Keeping Your Friends Close
by The Rarispy
Summary: When Nino and Alya started dating, they made a promise to each other that they would never keep secrets. Naturally, Alya made a similar promise with her best friend Marinette, and Nino with Adrien. So needless to say, things will become a bit complicated when they both learn something shocking about each other's best friend...
1. The Promise

_It all started with caged emotions. … Well, and us being locked inside of an actual cage._

Alya cautiously reached out, and grabbed Nino's hand in hers.

"Yeah, okay," she said. "…I'm in."

Nino smiled back at her, and the warmth circulated between them.

"Okay. Then I guess, we are now officially a couple."

Alya and Nino continued to sit and wait, having cemented their love but their minds still filled with worry.

"How long are they going to spend fighting that weird shapeshifter dude, anyway?" Alya wondered. "I'm just worried about Marinette…"

"Yeah, and Adrien too."

Alya raised an eyebrow. "Y'know… I still can't believe you had Adrien in on that whole thing. You were playing Marinette like a fiddle back there, Nino."

"Well, what do you want me to say?" Nino rebutted. "He was the one who offered to help me win Marinette over! Why are you being so bitter about it, anyway? He was just trying to be a good friend!"

"Good friends don't-" Alya stopped and took a deep sigh. "It doesn't feel right to me when you keep secrets from your own friends, especially when it makes your _other_ friends feel like they're being manipulated. And… I don't know, to me, it would feel a whole lot worse if it was someone you cared about as more than just a friend…"

Nino smiled softly at her, but drooped as he took in what she was saying.

"Nino… If we're really going to do this, then we're going to have to make a promise." She held out her pinky finger. Hesitantly, Nino raised his up.

"And I'm guessing that promise is… no more secrets?"

She nodded.

"No more secrets between us."

And so they made a truce.

* * *

 _That was several months ago. Nino and I became really close partners after that, once we were finally able to start being honest with each other. We agreed never to keep any secrets from each other that could jeopardize our relationship. And both of us thought that would always be really easy._

 _Well it was… at first. But then, things got complicated._

Marinette Dupain-Cheng and her best friend Alya Césaire stood in front of the school chatting. Class was going to start soon, and everyone was slowly filing in.

Alya was just in the midst of saying something that made Marinette giggle when they both stopped and saw Adrien. He was walking up to the school, not quite looking himself. His head was down to the ground and his phone dangled in his left hand as he walked.

"What's wrong with Adrien?" Marinette wondered.

"I'm not sure… I've never seen him look so depressed before."

Trailing behind Adrien, Nino walked up to the both of them. He sighed sadly.

"He's supposed to be attending a big dinner party this weekend for the Agreste fashion line," he explained. "But… he just found out that his dad won't be there, and, well, based on what I heard from that phone call, I guess even his dad's assistant won't be able to chaperone him. So he… might have to go there completely alone."

"Oh, no," replied Marinette. "That sounds terrible. I wish there was something we could do to cheer him up."

"Hmmm…" Alya put a finger to her chin. "You know, maybe there is…"

* * *

"W-wh-WHAT!? You want me to… a-ask Adrien out!?"

"Why not, girl? This could be the perfect thing for you!" Alya tried to assure her, her arms on Marinette's shoulders. "You've been waiting for the perfect chance to ask Adrien out on a date for months now, and here it is!"

Marinette's lip quivered heavily.

"Marinette, it's a party celebrating Gabriel Agreste's industry. Do you know how many aspiring fashion journalists will probably be at that party? Just think about it, if you showed up to that event in a tip-top outfit you made yourself, not only would you impress Adrien, you'd probably catch the attention of some _very_ esteemed people in the business! More importantly, it would make Adrien's whole night if he had a friend to go with. And you'd better do it before Chloé jumps in."

The two of them were right outside Madame Bustier's classroom having this conversation, just out of earshot of Adrien, who was still slumped at his desk. Marinette's face drooped as she looked at him.

"Ohhhhh, I really hate to see him so sad…"

"Come on, Marinette. If you won't do it for yourself, do it for your bestie."

With that, she winked at Marinette while blowing a kiss at her: their secret friendship gesture.

Marinette bit her lip, her mind at a crossroads. A nervous sweat began to break over her face. Her eyes darted back and forth as if she was having a fierce mental debate… with herself.

 _She's right, Marinette! If you just go over there and ask to be his date to the party, then he'll be eternally grateful and maybe he'll want to go on even more dates with you, and more and more until you two finally get married!_

 _Either that, or I'll trip over my own tongue and look like an idiot in front of Adrien, and he'll laugh in my face and film it and upload it to the Internet so he can laugh at it for the rest of his life!_

 _Well, then again, even if I did make a fool of myself and he laughs at me, at least then he wouldn't be so sad anymore… Wait, am I actually rationalizing being a dunce for Adrien? I mean, I guess I might if I knew it'd cheer him u-_

Her thoughts were interrupted when a soft push from Alya startled her and sent her flying across the room in frenzy. Before she knew it, she was standing right in front of…

"Oh… hey, Marinette. I didn't see you there."

Marinette instantly stood up and began to fidget weirdly as she talked.

"A-A-Adrien, hey! What's up, how's it going? It's a beautiful day outside, isn't it? Well, I mean, I guess it's supposed to be overcast today, but hey, clouds are always good, right? Need clouds for rain and… water and stuff… right?"

Adrien cocked his head up. "…Huh?" Marinette cleared her throat.

"What I was saying was, uh… I was just wondering if, uh… You see, um… You have that dinner party going on, I mean not that I've been spying on you or anything, Nino just told me. And I was wondering if, uh… well… I wanted to-to… ask you… if… YOU WANTED ALYA TO BE YOUR DATE TO THE DINNER!"

Alya facepalmed hard.

"Wait, Alya wants to be my date?" Adrien replied. "Well, gee. I mean, I don't know what to say. I didn't think Alya was into all that socialite stuff."

Alya quickly ran up behind Marinette and butted in. "You're right, you're right! I don't know what I was thinking, Adrien. I would never be comfortable at a big party like that, not without friends anyway. Ooh! I know!" She grabbed Marinette by the shoulders and hoisted her forward. "Marinette, why don't you go in my place?"

"What… I mean- I couldn't…"

"Yeah, that would be an awesome idea, Marinette," Adrien chimed in. "A bunch of my dad's connections in the fashion business are going to be there, and it would be really great if you came wearing one of your own really cool and unique designs! It would be a great opportunity for you if you came as my plus one."

"Told ya," Alya whispered. Marinette grunted in response, just as Nino walked over.

"You guys are going to that fancy dinner party together? Awww, man. I've always wanted to go to one of those. I would've been cool with being your date," he remarked, smirking.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Nino. But to be fair to Marinette, she _did_ ask first…"

"Oh no, that's fine!" Marinette sputtered out. "I'd be totally okay with Nino going instead of me!"

"Marinette..." Alya growled.

"Hmmm… Hey, I've got an idea!" said Adrien. "Why don't we all go together, like a double date? Everything's more fun when we're together as friends, right?" But then he looked at Alya. "Oh… unless you still didn't want to come Alya. Totally your choice."

"Well, I don't-"

But then Marinette pressed her face up to Alya's and whispered, "Please say yes, Alya! I don't think I could handle a whole date with Adrien by myself, and it would probably help me a lot if you were there too!"

"But I-" Marinette winked at Alya and rapidly blew _three_ kisses at her. The triple friendship. "Oh… alright."

"YAY!" Marinette and Nino both cheered.

Alya and Adrien both laughed heartily. They continued discussing their new plans together, coordinating times and talking about what the event would consist us, until their camaraderie was interrupted by-

"LOOK OUT!" Rose screamed, pointing towards the window.

Everyone went to take cover when they saw a large object headed straight for their classroom. Glass shattered above their heads, and when the dust settled, they all uncovered their arms to glance at the huge motorcycle that has just crashed through their classroom window.

Madame Bustier, having just walked into the room, looked equally as shocked as her students.

"What on Earth is going on!?" she exclaimed.

* * *

The citizens of Paris ran for the hills as chaos erupted all around them… in vehicle form.

A taxi cab hurled right for a storefront window, smashing into its cake displays. As the customers fled in terror, a monstrous woman emerged from inside the cab, phasing through it like a ghost.

No coincidence, because she herself looked very ghoulish. Her skin was green and translucent, and her eyes had a heavy black shadowing. She floated in the air clad in rusted chrome overalls, over a titanium T-shirt with a metal cap on. Her hair was purple and waving around wildly, as if a strong wind was constantly blowing over her.

"Face the autocratic terror of your own terrible automobiles!" the akumatized mechanic bellowed in a ghostly voice. "Once upon a time, your abuse and neglect for your vehicles drove me and my business up the walls! Now they will be driving _you_ … straight into the afterlife! A-ha-ha-ha!"

A purple butterfly insignia appeared over her eyes; the mischievous master of evil was communicating with his latest puppet.

"Your revved-up revenge is almost complete, Mecha-Spectre," Hawkmoth said confidently. "Now you must take this road rally into its final lap… by getting me Ladybug and Chat Noir's Miraculouses!"

"With pleasure, Hawkmoth," Mecha-Spectre responded.

The students all ran out of the school, looking to head home or take shelter somewhere safe. An akuma attack this close to the vicinity almost always prompted an early dismissal, which more often than not made the jobs of Paris's loyal superheroes a whole lot easier.

"Oh man, oh man! What's happening out there!?" Nino panicked. "Alya, come on! We gotta get the heck out of here!"

But Alya nudged him with her hand as she readied her cell phone.

"Hang on, I gotta hang back to nab some sweet footage for the Ladyblog. Ladybug is sure to show up any second to teach this baddie what's what."

"Yo, forget that, man! I'm running for the hills!" And with that, Nino took off screaming, heading back into the school.

"Nino, wait! It's probably not safe in there!" Alya called back. She sighed in annoyance. "Great, now I have to go after him."

Marinette had an idea. "Uhhh… don't worry! I'll go look for him! You stay there and keep filming!"

"Y-yeah, that's a great idea," Adrien seemed to agree. "Why don't the two of us split up so we can find him fast?"

Marinette nodded and they both ran into the school, leaving Alya alone on the steps. She gave them a puzzled look, but shrugged it off and held up her phone to begin recording.

* * *

Marinette vacated herself to Ms. Mendeleiev's completely empty science classroom. After a quick scan to make sure no one else was around, she ushered to her jacket pocket.

"Time to transform, Tikki! SPOTS ON!"

Meanwhile, in the locker room near the gymnasium, Adrien took a second to catch his breath before summoning Plagg.

"Ehhh, just five more minutes…" the sleepy Kwami mumbled.

"No time for rest, Plagg! Paris needs us! CLAWS OUT!"

With both of their transformation sequences activated, Ladybug and Chat Noir were ready for battle!


	2. Wrong Place at the Wrong Time

As vehicles flew above their heads, a couple tried to run across the street to safety. However, the woman tripped in the middle of the road, and her husband had to stop to help her up. Unfortunately for them, they were right in Mecha-Spectre's path.

"Well, if it isn't foolish old Jerry, who blamed _me_ for his tires blowing out!" she ghoulishly bellowed. "You didn't heed my warning, Jerry. You didn't take the snow tires. Now, you will suffer for all eternity under a blanket of snow… six feet underground!"

She possessed a nearby monster truck, which then proceeded to rev up and start veering right for the unlucky couple.

They both screamed in terror.

But just as they were about to meet an untimely demise, a black figure swooped in and blocked its advance with his trusty baton.

The couple shouted a quick "Thank you, Chat Noir!" and ran off. Mecha-Spectre was so flustered inside the truck that she flew out of it, dizzy as could be.

"Sorry, boys and ghouls," Chat Noir boasted, "but this truck rally just got put to a stop!"

He ran up to join his partner on a streetlight as Mecha-Spectre growled at the both of them.

Ladybug scanned her foe closely and noticed something.

"There! That wrench in her pocket! I think that's where her akuma is."

"No problem, m'lady. You just keep that iron lady distracted, and I'll snatch it right away!"

Mecha-Spectre flew down to two mopeds riding down the street. Their drivers instantly fled as she used her ghostly arms to tear them apart from the inside. She then held onto their front chasses to use as shields.

"Uhhh, good luck with that," said Ladybug.

* * *

Meanwhile, back inside the school, Nino found his way to the men's bathroom. He bust a stall door open and went inside and curled up against the wall. He trembled with fear, his knees shaking wildly. He dug his phone out and tried to contact Alya. But the line wouldn't even ring.

"Come on, come on, pick up…"

* * *

A crowd had gathered to watch the heroes take on Mecha-Spectre, and Alya was right up front with her phone camera.

"Ladybug, stop her quick!"

"All of Paris will be doomed!"

"My own car is going to kill me!"

"Wow, this is a great angle," said Alya. The rest of the crowd just looked at her in confusion.

Ladybug and Chat Noir both made quick work dodging all of Mecha-Spectre's attacks. She had possessed bicycle wheels and was now wielding them in their hands like chakrams. She threw them at her foes to the best of her ability, but they were both just too evasive.

Mecha-Spectre roared in frustration.

"You _will_ submit to my might! Accept your fate, or else you'll be swimming in oil!"

"I bet if we could knock her out of one of those things while she's phasing through it, we could tire her out," Chat suggested.

"Good thinking, kitty! I'm proud of you."

"Does that mean kitty gets a kiss after this is over?" he smarmily asked her, leaning in for one. But Ladybug put a finger over his lips.

"Let's… focus on the mission first. Now where did- AHHH!" she yelped.

Mecha-Spectre had taken off high in the air while they were distracted… and she quickly took advantage of a jetliner sailing above the air.

"All of you nasty Parisians took my skills for granted and let your cars turn to rust!" her voice boomed from inside the now jetliner, which slowly began to take a downward curve. "Now the mechanical wonders you took for granted all your life will deliver you to a FIERY GRAAAAVE!"

Everyone in Paris screamed at the sight of a massive airplane plunging straight for them. Even dutiful filmographer Alya trembled a bit, before finally dropping her phone and running off. Only then did it finally begin to ring.

"What are we going to do now!?" Chat freaked.

"Now might be a good time to unsheathe those claws," Ladybug replied.

"Oh, yeah! Good thinking, m'lady!" With that, Cat raised his upper arm as he drew power from his Miraculous to activate his ultimate attack. "CATACLYSM!"

"RAAAAAAGGGGHHHH!" Mecha-Spectre screamed.

Cat leapt from lightpost to building side to rooftop until he was facing the plane head-on. With a fierce look of determination, he plunged his black glowing claw right onto the careening jet. In only a few moments, it completely deteriorated, leaving Mecha-Spectre helpless in the air.

Ladybug made quick work catching all of the falling passengers with her yo-yo and dropping each of them safely to the ground.

"Let's wrap this up!" she declared. "LUCKY CHARM!"

Her yo-yo flew up into the air and materialized a set of red-and-black spotted…

"Car keys? What am I supposed to do with these?"

With her amazing ladybug senses at play, she was able to make out an advanced-looking wealthy gentleman's car nearby, and linked it together with a weakened Mecha-Spectre in her mind.

"I got it!" she proudly proclaimed. "Chat Noir! See if you can get her to go inside that car right there!"

"Huh?" he replied back, looking absolutely puzzled. "Uhhh… okay! Hey, Miss Metal Maniac! Over here!"

His attempt to play into Mecha-Spectre's rage worked, as she snapped out of her haze and began to advance towards him.

"Neener-neener-neener!" he taunted, dancing around right in front of the car Ladybug had pointed to. Right on cue, Mecha-Spectre lunged forward, and took control of the car. "Now, Ladybug!"

Ladybug clicked a button the keys, and with a beep-beep in response, the car activated its…

"Blast shields? Huh."

"Well, that's an interesting feature. I gotta get me one of those," Cat remarked.

Mecha-Spectre tried and tried in vain to escape from the metal prison, but it was all in vain. Ladybug waited a few more moments, before clicking the button to release her. By then, she was all worn out.

"I'll be taking that!"

Ladybug grabbed the wrench from her pocket and tried to break it with her knee, but it wouldn't bend.

"Allow me, my dear," Cat piped up. With the last of his power, he used his Cataclysm to slice the wrench open, releasing Hawkmoth's dark agent within.

"Bye, bye, little butterfly. MIRACULOUS LADYBUG!"

Ladybug worked her magic, and in a pink flash, the entire city was returned to normal. The dark energy of the butterfly was released, the vehicles were all returned to their original positions, and Mecha-Spectre reverted to her original form, a flustered female mechanic.

"Huh? Where am I?" she asked. A couple of people she had personally attacked walked up to her, with looks of shame on their faces.

"Hey, Raina?" said Jerry. "I'm… sorry I didn't listen to you about getting those snow tires on my truck."

Another one spoke up. "Yeah. I… I think I'd like to have that appointment to get my muffler replaced after all."

* * *

Chat Noir landed next to Ladybug as they both stood on the ground, watching from afar.

"Pound it!"

Suddenly, Chat Noir whipped out his cellphone and started posing with arm around Ladybug.

"Ahh! Chat, what are you doing?"

"Come on, Buggaboo! Take a selfie with me to celebrate another akuma defeated!"

She rolled her eyes, but put on her best smile anyway. With a click from his phone, Cat took the picture. Just then, Ladybug's earpiece began to beep.

"Uh-oh. Looks like I gotta split. Catch ya around, Chat-"

"Ladybug! Ladybug!"

Alya ran up to the duo, stopping momentarily to catch her breath, before whipping her own phone out and pointing it at them.

"Please! I'd love more than anything to have an interview for my blog!"

"Oh, uh- I'm so sorry… miss, but… I really need to get going," Ladybug answered skirmishly. She hoisted her yo-yo up in the air and began to take off. "Hopefully another time!" she called back.

Chat sighed longingly as he watched her leave.

"Awwww," Alya said, putting her head down. Chat looked at her, and cleared his throat.

"Y'know… I'd be more than happy to give an interview. After all, I _am_ more or less the leader of our little team. It would be my honor to discuss our awesome feats as a pair."

A beeping noise sounded from Alya's phone.

"Uh-oh…" She began thumbing through her messages. "Oh man, I forgot about poor Nino!"

* * *

Nino was still crouched in the school restroom, waiting desperately for a text from Alya. He took a deep breath and decided to venture outside.

"Hello…?" he called out, his voice trembling. "I-is it safe?"

He started to walk out into the open atrium, and as he did, a text alert appeared on his phone. He was about to look at it, but stopped when he heard a whooshing noise from above him. Thinking quickly, he ducked into a nearby janitor's closet, and kept the door open a slit to peek out of.

Ladybug herself descended, using her yo-yo to lower herself down to the seemingly empty space. No sooner did she land than her earpiece sent out its final beep, and a pink aura enveloped Ladybug until standing in her place was none other than Marinette Dupain-Cheng.

"Phew," she said out loud. "That one was actually tough."

A small red creature appeared from inside of her jacket, and fluttered next to Marinette.

"Tell me about it," said Tikki. "A villain who can possess cars and airplanes and use them to attack people? That was just _craaazy_!"

Marinette giggled. "Yeah. But at least it's over now. Now all I have left to worry about is how on Earth I'm going to hold myself together on a date with Adrien…"

"Deep breaths, Marinette. Deep breaths."

Tikki pat her on the shoulder repeatedly as they both left the school grounds.

Once they were gone, the closet door creaked open all the way. Nino stood there, his mouth agape.

"Ladybug is… Marinette!?"


	3. Photo Evidence

" _And I'm guessing that promise is… no more secrets?"_

" _No more secrets between us."_

" _You got it, Alya. No more secrets."_

* * *

The next day, Paris was in a rather relaxed state following the chaotic events that had unfolded yesterday. Life had returned to normal, and everyone was back to their usual business.

For fashion superstar Adrien Agreste, this meant yet another long and grueling modeling shoot at the local park.

"Now face towards me…" the photographer instructed. "And… let's try the rebel pose again!"

Adrien shrugged, but acquiesced and did a lean against the water fountain, crossing his arms and giving a scowl at the camera.

"Chin up, Adrien, chin up! And perk up your cheekbones a little bit more! That's it, and… good! Now let's try another Misty Wind expression for good measure."

As usual, a small crowd of fans and swooning teens were gathered around to watch the photoshoot unfold. Gabriel Agreste's assistant Nathalie was off to the side, tapping away at the tablet that served as her digital clipboard.

And also as usual, Marinette was among the crowd, watching Adrien with absolute glee. Alya was alongside her, decidedly looking less enamored, but giving a supportive smile to her friend.

"Look at him go…" Marinette said wistfully. "Isn't he just so dreamy…"

"Yeah, I guess…" Alya said back. "I guess I just don't see how this is so exciting when he's wearing the same clothes as every other day. Like, lack of variety, much?"

Marinette huffed. "Alya, when you're deep into the world of fashion as much as I am, you can easily spot the distinct differences between every outfit he wears. When you do, it's like night and day. And each one is perfected more and more with every passing day, just like him."

"If you say so, Marinette," she said, rolling her eyes.

"Ohhhh, I just don't know how I'm supposed to muster up the energy to go over to him and ask!" Marinette fretted. "How am I supposed to last a whole dinner date with him when I don't even have the strength to simply ask what kind of dress he wants me to make?"

"Well, doubting yourself isn't going to help anything, girl! It's simple, okay? All you have to do wait until he's going to take a break, and then go up and ask him, just like that! You can pretend you're talking to me, if it helps."

"O-okay."

Alya dug out her phone to look for something. But nothing turned up and she huffed loudly.

"Man, what is going on with Nino?"

"Huh? Did something happen between you guys?" asked Marinette.

"I don't know. Ever since that akuma attack yesterday, it seems like he's been avoiding me. He won't answer any of my texts." With her phone being to no avail, she put it down and began to look worried. "I hope he's alright…"

"I'm sure he's fine, Alya," Marinette reassured, putting her arm on her friend's shoulder. "He probably got… caught up in something. Something important."

Unbeknownst to either of them, Nino was walking into the park right behind them. He smiled at Adrien's direction, though Adrien was so focused he didn't seem to notice him. Then he froze when he spotted Alya and Marinette amongst the crowd.

" _Oh geez, there they are,_ " he thought to himself. " _What am I supposed to do? I… I still can't wrap it around my head that Marinette and Ladybug are actually the same person! She's been the guardian of Paris this whole time and she sits right behind me in class, and she's… right there! This is so whack! How will I ever face her again? How will I ever face Alya…?_ "

* * *

"Smile wider, eyes slit downward more, good, good, and… presto!"

Adrien let out a yawn once the photographer was satisfied.

"Alright, take five, guys."

The photographer shut off the camera and stage lights and worked to develop the photos taken. Adrien took a swig of water from a nearby bottle and pulled out his phone.

"Now's your chance, Marinette," Alya whispered. "Go over there and talk to him!"

Marinette yelped.

"But- but- how!? What do I say? What should I do? Tap him on the shoulder, or yell out his name? What if he doesn't remember who I am? Why would he? Alya, help!"

"Just… don't think about it and do it!"

She nudged Marinette forward, and Marinette awkwardly tried to walk forward to Adrien, in a manner that her classmate Kim once referred to as "like a duck waddling on ice".

Adrien meanwhile, was checking something on his phone that made him chuckle. Just then, Marinette came up to him and, after gritting her teeth, reflexively put her hand on his shoulder and shouted "Heeeeey!" Adrien dropped his phone in shock.

"Oh my gosh! I am so sorry, Adrien! I didn't mean to scare you!"

"Oh, that's okay, Marinette," he said, turning to face her. "You just caught me off guard, that's all. So what's up?"

"Umm- I, uh… I just wanted to know… How do you know, no, what do you know… uhh… So, our date is in two days, and… Well, I mean! It's not a date, it's more of a double dinner… thing… But, Alya, I- No wait, you're not Alya, you're Adrien, you're all handsome and- I- BYE!"

And with that, she completely sped off, leaving Adrien dumbfounded. Alya ran over to him.

"What was… that about?" Adrien asked Alya.

"Oh, she's just… a little nervous about the dinner party is all," she prevaricated. "Her head's all in a muck right now because she's having trouble figuring out what kind of dress she should design for it."

"Oh! Well, I mean, it doesn't have to be anything _too_ fancy or informal. Uhh, tell her that… the best thing she could probably make is a design that's 100% Marinette. Something unique that just speaks her. That's probably what would impress those socialites the most."

"Thanks so much. I'll uh, be sure to catch her and let her know. Thanks a lot, Adrien."

"No problem, Alya! Speaking of that whole dinner thing, were you and Nino gonna-"

Just then, Nathalie gasped and suddenly began to drag Adrien away by the arm.

"Adrien, come on, post haste!" she barked. "You're going to be late for your fencing practice!"

"Uhhh, okay. Sorry, Alya, gotta run!" he called back before being dragged away.

Alya waved back at him, but then she looked down and gasped. Adrien's phone was still on the ground from when Marinette spooked it out of his hands. She picked it up and tried to run after.

"Adrien, wait!" she called out. "You forgot your…"

But Adrien was already inside the limousine and took off.

"...phone." She looked at the lost phone that now laid in her hand. "Great."

* * *

Marinette was still running. At this point, she didn't really have a destination or a clear sense of where she was going. Her mind had just one thought, "Run! Get out of there!"

No sooner had she gotten out of the park then she bumped right into someone. She managed to compose herself and fix her hair, and then looked up at the person she had run into.

"Oh! Nino! I'm so sorry, I didn't see you there!"

Nino quickly turned around, but jerked back when he saw who was addressing him. A sweat instantly broke over his face, and in his mind, he was subconsciously placing Ladybug's outfit over Marinette's worried face.

A perfect match.

 _How did I never tell it by the hair before!?_

"Nino…?" she called out to him, waving her hand in front of his face. "Hello? Are you oka-"

"Ladybu- I mean, Marinette!" he blurted out. "Hi! Uh… yeah, I'm totally fine! You just kinda… scared me and stuff. I, uh… Love to chat, but I gotta fly!"

He hightailed out of there. Now Marinette was the one left confused.

"Well, that was weird."

Tikki flew out to her side, now that the coast was clear.

"Yeah. But you know what's funny? That was kind of similar to the way you just spoke to Adrien back there."

Marinette put her hand to her forehead and groaned.

"Oh no… please don't tell me he suddenly has a crush on me again."

* * *

Meanwhile, Alya was still standing in the park trying to figure out how Adrien's phone worked.

"Come on! All I want to do is make a call to his house…" she said to herself, trying to navigate through different functions. "How are you supposed to work one of these super high-tech smartphones, anyway? I can't find anything on here. No wonder Marinette had so much trouble deleting that message."

She kept thumbing through until she had arrived at Adrien's picture gallery.

"Well, here's his photos…" Then her eye caught on to something interesting. "Huh. That's funny. I didn't know Adrien collected pictures of Ladybug and Chat Noir? Did he get these off of my blog or something? Wow. This one looks like the selfie they took yesterday," she giggled.

Indeed, it was the impromptu picture Chat Noir had instigated with Ladybug shortly after Mecha-Spectre's defeat. She looked at the photo for a moment, but then she began to notice something weird about it.

"Wait a minute… this isn't the same angle as the one I posted on my website. This is… different. Ladybug's much closer to the camera in this one, and Chat's… arm is stretched out? And where's the…"

A long pause and then…

"Hang on! This isn't a picture of the selfie!" She gasped. "This is _the_ selfie! But how is that possible? The only way he would have that was if… was if this was the phone that took the picture! No way! But that would mean that…"

She desperately scrolled through the rest of Adrien's pictures. She slowly began to realize that were far more photos of Ladybug than Chat, and the only pictures of Chat on the phone were up-close selfies, all of them _from the viewpoint of the camera_!

Alya almost dropped the phone herself as the realization finally set in. She went back to the recent selfie, and continued to stare at it with wide eyes.

"Adrien Agreste _is_ Chat Noir!"


	4. Inteview with a Kwami

Some time ago, Nino Lahiffe was reading a comic book at the school library. He was humming a tune to himself; a song on the radio he had heard earlier that day.

Just as he began to subconsciously beatbox, his best friend Adrien walked up to him.

"Hey-hey, if it isn't the man of the hour!" Nino said smugly.

"Where is it?" Adrien demanded, not even flinching.

"Where's… what?" Nino replied back, feigning obliviousness.

"Come on, Nino! I saw it in your hand just a few minutes ago. Stop being a jerk and give it!"

Nino, chuckling, reached into his bookbag and pulled out a small notebook. Adrien immediately swiped it.

"I'm really sorry, dude," he giggled. "I was gonna give it back right away, honest."

"Uh-huh." He noticed Nino giggling. "You saw, didn't you?"

"Maybe…" Nino accentuated.

Adrien's face scrunched up, and his cheeks flushed a deep red.

"So, you want to tell me what's going on there or what?" Nino pried.

Adrien sheepishly looked off to the side for a minute, before he finally closed his eyes and sighed. He flipped through his own notebook, taking note of all the doodles of Ladybug inside, some infested with hearts.

"Okay, fine" he muttered. "I… I have a crush on Ladybug. Okay? It's not a big deal."

Nino scoffed. "You're right, it's no big deal! It's nothing to be ashamed of! Half of the guys in our school are practically in love with her. You should see Mich-"

"Yeah, but I still don't want anyone to know," Adrien interrupted, speaking softly as he could. "Please, just keep it between you and me, okay?"

Nino stifled a giggle, but Adrien narrowed his eyes. With a nervous gulp, Nino rapidly nodded.

"Okay, alright, dude! We're cool! I promise I won't tell anyone. Scout's honor."

Adrien breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks, dude."

"No problem," he said, patting Adrien on the back. "What are best buds for?"

"I don't know, how about not peeking at my notes without asking me?" Adrien retorted, glaring at him.

Nino just shrugged and gave a nervous smile. But Adrien took a seat and groaned loudly, bowing his head.

"It's not like it matters much," he bemoaned. "I doubt she would ever love me back. I don't think she even knows I exist."

"What makes you say that, bro?"

"Because I saw her once, when I was just me. Well… just me going about my day, I mean. It was the day that freaky meme was running amuck all over Paris. That's when she saw me. I looked at her, she looked at me, and… I could see it in her eyes."

Nino frowned.

"She clearly didn't know who I was."

* * *

 _If only you knew just how wrong you were, bro…_

The day after his photoshoot in the park, Adrien was now deeply rooted into his fencing practice. His fencing partner was giving it his all, but luckily, so was Adrien, and the two were fiercely matched.

In the midst of all the fighting, Alya poked her head in through the gymnasium door. Noticing the locker room unoccupied, she carefully snuck past all of the fencers and made it into the locker room.

It was a stroke of luck that Alya was even able to figure out which of the numbered lockers was Adrien's. She had Adrien's phone in her hand, and it was open on a picture of Chloé Bourgeois gleefully wrapping her arm around Adrien's shoulder in front of his open locker. It was pretty clear by Adrien's expression that the selfie was _not_ of his consent.

But the important detail for Alya was that she could just make out the numbers of the lockers adjacent to his in the picture, this allowing her to pinpoint which one it was.

As she walked up to it, she reached out to open it, but then began to hesitate. Thinking of Chloé caused Alya to flashback to the last time she had suspicions about one of her classmates being a superhero: the incident that pushed her to become Lady Wifi.

" _She's guilty of invasion of privacy! I have proof!_ "

" _What? Seriously!? All I did was take a measly photo!_ "

" _You're suspended for a week, Alya._ "

" _She's no superhero, she's super-psycho!_ "

" _ **I'm Lady Wifi, and I'll expose the lies of anyone who covers up the truth!**_ "

The memory of these events caused Alya's eyes to water up. Shaking her head, she took a ferocious look at the locker, and started to walk away.

"I jumped to conclusions once before, and all it did was get me in a lot of trouble _and_ hurt my friends," she lamented. "I'm not going to make that same mistake again, especially not with a close friend like Adrien."

Just as she was about to walk away completely, a single noise cut her thoughts.

" _Burp!_ "

Alya whipped her head around.

"That… sounded like it was coming from his locker…"

She bit her lip as she mulled over what to do, but decided it was worth checking out. Pulling out a hair pen, she fashioned it into a lockpick and picked open Adrien's locker with a wincing face.

She yelped when she saw what was inside.

A small, black bug-like creature lay inside Adrien's locker, sleeping on top of Adrien's gym bag with a piece of cheese over his chest. It was snoring rather loudly.

" _What… is that thing? Some sort of tiny black… cat?_ " she thought to herself.

The creature rolled over in his sleep. "No more… no more camembert, please…" it muttered. "Well, okay… Maybe one or two more…"

" _It talks?_ "

Cautiously, she picked the creature up by its stubby leg and tried to speak to it.

"Um… hello? Excuse me?"

"Just five… five more…" it muttered.

Losing patience, Alya shook the creature up and down, until it finally began to stir.

"Okay, I'm up, I'm up! Geez!" he shouted.

"Ummm… just, what… are you?" Alya inquired.

Plagg's eyes shot open as he realized his situation and he began to flail his arms around nervously, before instinctively assuming a stiff robot-like position. He began to move his body around as if he were a wind-up toy.

"Hello! I am your friend, Mr. Happy-Cat!" he said, in a robotic voice. "Play with me! Play with me!"

"Yeah, nice try," Alya responded.

"Won't you please play with me?" Seeing that Alya wasn't convinced, he began to move erratically and declared, now with stifled anger in his voice, "Caution! Caution! I am a defective toy! If you don't put me down now, I'm going to shock you!"

Alya huffed. "Look! I know you're not a toy, I saw you sleeping! And… I also know that Adrien is Chat Noir," she said for the first time with confidence.

Plagg grumbled nervously.

"Please… can I borrow you for just a few minutes?" Alya pleaded. "I just want to ask you some questions for an interview, and then I promise I'll be out of your hair and you can go right back to sleep."

"I don't know," Plagg replied. "I don't think Adrien would like me doing that…"

Alya, determined not to lose her only lead, scanned Adrien's locker for valuables. She noticed a container marked "Camembert", and instantly struck an idea. She picked it up and held it in front of Plagg.

"Hey. Is this yours? This… camembert cheese?" Plagg started to sweat. "That's right. I heard you talking in your sleep. You like this cheese a lot, don't you…?"

"Yaahh! That's mine! Give it back!" Plagg begged, trying with all his might to grab it.

But instead, Alya took the cheese box and tossed it into her own bag.

"I'll tell you what. I'll give this back to you, but in return _you_ have to give me just five minutes of your time. Sound like a fair deal, little bug?"

Plagg crossed his arms, trying to resist her dastardly trick. But finally, he gave in.

"Ugh, fine."

"Awesome!"

* * *

Meanwhile, Nino was once again in the library.

This time however, he wasn't reading a comic book. Instead, he was on a computer.

On his screen was a picture of Marinette, scanned in from one of the many pictures he'd taken of his fellow classmates on his phone. Marinette was smiling at the camera with her arms at her sides.

Nino took a moment to fret over this picture. Then, he clicked over to the other picture he had open in Photoshop. It was a photo of Ladybug taken straight from a newspaper article. She was smiling courageously, and had her arms at her sides similarly to Marinette, but with her trusty yo-yo in one arm.

Nino squinted as he tried to discern the two photos in conjunction with each other. Then, he went for a more practical method. Using the Lasso tool, he cut out Ladybug's mask from the picture, and pasted it in front of Marinette's face.

All of a sudden, it was like he was looking at a picture of Ladybug wearing his friend's clothes.

"I just… can't believe I never saw this before," he thought out loud. "I've known Marinette for who knows how long, and… Ugh, seriously! Both of them, blue pigtails!? It's so freaking obvious, and yet-"

"Umm, Nino?"

Nino tensed up. He immediately minimized his work, and then turned to face…

"Oh… H-hey, Marinette, what's happening?"

"I'm not interrupting you doing something important, am I?" Marinette asked.

"Uhhh… no, I was just… writing something for the school paper!" Nino lied. "Yeah, Alya's letting me write an editorial on, uhh… the freshest… beats for… students to jam out to on Homecoming night! Yeah!"

"Okay…" Marinette eyed him weirdly, but continued. "I just wanted to ask if you knew where Alya is. I haven't seen her at all since we were in the park together yesterday."

Nino sighed. "I'm sorry, Marinette. I haven't seen her anywhere either."

"Man, where is she? I really need her help figuring this whole thing out!"

"Why? Is… something up?"

Nino wasn't sure what was going on, but he wanted to be there for his friend, as well as his girlfriend. He got up from the computer to stand alongside Marinette, but she glumly looked down and went to sit at a nearby table instead.

"It's… it's something I can't tell you about, Nino. I don't… I don't think you'd understand."

"Marinette…" Nino sat down across from her, and put a hand on her shoulder. He smiled with conviction. "It's okay. I, uh- I already know."

"Wait, you do?" Marinette groaned. "I guess Alya _did_ tell you after all..."

"Oh no, she's not the one who… Well, I mean- it wasn't her fault, I sort of accidentally saw you ch-"

"You haven't told anyone else, have you?" Marinette interjected.

"No! No, of course not! Your secret's totally safe with me," Nino assured, placing his hand over his heart.

"Okay, good." Marinette sighed in relief. "The _last_ thing I need right now is for everyone else in the school to breathe down my neck about my crush on Adrien, especially Chloé."

"Your cr-" Nino stammered out. "Wait… _what_?"

"Alya told me that she talked to Adrien and he just wants me to be 'myself' for this big party thing. But I have no idea what he means by that! I don't know what part of me he truly likes and would be really wowed by!" Her face slumped completely down to the desk and she cried out in a muffle, "What does it matter, anyway? Adrien barely even knows I exist."

"Marinette, I… I don't…"

Nino's mind raced at a thousand thoughts per minute.

" _Marinette has a crush on Adrien? Ladybug has a crush on Adrien!? Then… then that means Adrien was wrong! When he told me a while ago that Ladybug didn't know who he was! But she does know him! What am I supposed to say here!?_ "

Before this conversation could get anywhere else, a large boom shook the whole building. Everyone in the vicinity immediately began to stand up and panic.

"Look! The city's under attack!" Kim shouted, looking out the window.

"It looks like another one of those akuma baddies!" said his friend Max.

Marinette and Nino gasped simultaneously.

"We have to hide!" they both said.

"You hide over there, I'll go find somewhere safe!" said Marinette.

"Wait, why? You can just…" Then Nino paused. "A-actually, you know what, you're right! It'd… it'd be better for us to split up! Good thinking, Marinette!"

Marinette looked at him oddly, but ran off anyway. Nino watched as she took off down the halls. At the other end, Adrien was running through the building, looking around desperately.

"Plagg?" he called out. "Plagg, where are you!?"

* * *

"…and then all he has to do is say 'Claws out!' and the ring just kind of sucks me in and I end up working my magic," Plagg was in the middle of explaining. "I don't have a lot of control over it, so it gets kind of annoying sometimes. But yeah, that's pretty much how it works."

He took another bite of cheese, while Alya paced around the empty staff room they were both chatting in, jotting down notes on her pad.

"Wow, this is all so amazing… Plagg, right? Is that with one 'g' or two?"

"Two… I think."

"I just… can't believe I've been sitting behind Chat Noir this whole time!" Alya gushed. "One of Paris's great superheroes, right there in our classroom!"

Plagg let out a huge yawn.

"Can we stop now? I should be getting back soon before he starts to wonder where I am, and before my sleep schedule gets totally thrown off."

"Of course, absolutely! Just uh… one more question," said Alya, still trying to contain her excitement. "So, this is just a minor formality that doesn't mean a whole lot to me personally, it just helps fill in some details. You wouldn't be able to tell me… who Ladybug really is under the mask, could you?" she asked, barely concealing her huge, ecstatic smile.

Plagg stared at her for a moment, and then just shrugged.

"You… don't want to tell me who she is?" Her face drooped, as her eagerness shifted to disappointment. "Alright, well that's… fine, I guess. I get it, privacy and all that. I didn't mean to pry."

"It's not so much that I don't want to tell you," Plagg clarified. "It's just that I really don't know who she is."

Alya blinked several times in confusion.

"What do you mean, you don't know?"

"I just… don't!" he shot back. "It's not mine or Adrien's responsibility to know Ladybug's real identity."

Alya's eyes shifted around as she pondered these words. "Are you saying that… Chat Noir doesn't even know who his loyal crime-fighting partner really is?"

Plagg nodded.

"But- but, that doesn't make any sense!" she exclaimed. "He and Ladybug have so much great chemistry, and they're amazing as a team! I was sure they must be a couple, or at least extremely close friends!"

"I don't know what to tell you, kid. When Tikki and I were assigned to find the next Ladybug and Chat, we both went our separate ways and picked our heroes out on our own. It's what we always do."

"Wait… Tikki?"

"Yeah. She's Ladybug's Kwami. I've known her for thousands of years. She's pretty cool." Alya didn't respond. "Um… are you okay there, Alya?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. It's just…" She put a finger to her chin as she tried to think. " _Tikki_. I can't help but feel like I've heard that name before…"

"Hmm. Well anyway, yeah she's really nice. Although between you and me, she can be a little high-strung sometimes. Makes her kinda difficult to work with, if you catch my drift." He finished his sentence with a burp.

Alya decided to shrug off the mystery of Tikki and hastily wrote down the rest of Plagg's answers.

"Ohh, this is such a hot scoop!" she said, sounding eccentric again. "So, thousands of years you've been doing this? Then that means my theory about there being multiple Ladybugs throughout history was correct!" Her smile faltered again as she realized something. "Huh. Well, now I'm confused as to why 'our' Ladybug had that textbook from our school then… And, come to think of it, why was Marinette trying to convince me that-"

"Plagg!" a familiar voice called out. "Plagg, are you in there?"

Plagg shot up and jittered. "Oh no, it's Adrien!"

Alya immediately opened up a cabinet nearby and crouched inside of it.

"I'll hide, you just pretend I'm not here," she whispered, and then shut herself inside.

"Huh? But why are you-"

Before he could say another word, Adrien burst through the door.

"Plagg, there you are!" he said exasperatedly. "What have you been up to!?"

"Uhh, well… I uh…"

"You can explain later! Right now, there's an akuma attacking! Plagg, CLAWS OUT!"

Plagg found himself being sucked in again, as Adrien commenced yet another transformation into the bringer of bad luck, Chat Noir.

"Time to go save everyone again!" And with that, Chat whipped out his baton and used it to climb up and out through the window. "YAHOO!" he shouted, taking off towards the villain of the day.

Once he was gone, the cabinet creaked open again. It actually wasn't shut all the way. Alya slipped out with her camera in her hand, her face aglow with shock and amazement.

"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh! I got to see Adrien transform into Chat Noir live and in-person, and I got it all _on camera_!"


	5. All Dressed Up with No Idea Where to Go

"Another akuma was stopped yesterday, thanks to our noble heroes Ladybug and Chat Noir," Nadja Chamack reported. "Thankfully, the duo were able to incapacitate the monster before any casualties were suffered as a result of the attack. Details are still fuzzy on the exact identity of the unfortunate akumatized person, but their anger seems to have stemmed from a bizarre incident with an elephant, a bicycle pump, a screwdriver, and seven tons of duck tape being used in a categorically elaborate prank…"

The television broadcast continued in Nino's bedroom, but Nino was certainly paying no attention to Ms. Chamack's accord of the events.

Nino rolled his chair back, examining the large elaborate chart he had drawn up on his wall. It resembled something a crazily-focused FBI planner would have concocted. Different push pins and pieces of string held up various pictures of Marinette, her alter ego Ladybug, Ladybug's superhero partner Chat Noir, her best friend and Nino's girlfriend Alya, and of course, Nino's best friend Adrien. The strings were used to draw connections between these individual people.

Nino scratched his head, still overwhelmed at the huge wall of information he was attempting to decipher.

"So… let's run through this again," Nino said to himself. "Marinette Dupain-Cheng is Ladybug. Ladybug and Marinette are one and the same. Marinette and Alya Césaire are best friends. Alya runs the Ladyblog, a website devoted to Ladybug, who is actually her best friend Marinette. Alya has run many posts on her blog trying to figure out who Ladybug's real identity is. So, I guess that means… she doesn't know it's Marinette? … Then again, it could all be an elaborate cover. But… no! I feel like Alya would've let me in on that secret if _she_ was in on it…"

He deliberated for a minute. He then let out a huff and pinned an index card next to Alya that read, "POSSIBLY OBLIVIOUS?"

He then turned his attention to the other factor in this web: Adrien.

"Adrien has a secret crush on Ladybug. Ladybug is actually Marinette. Adrien… I'm pretty sure, does _not_ know that Ladybug and Marinette are the same person, or else he'd be going gaga over her in class!"

He gazed at a string he had connected between Ladybug and Chat Noir… and placed another one between him and Marinette.

"Alya always says that she thinks Ladybug has a thing for Chat Noir, like they're lovers. But… Marinette says that she _actually_ has a crush on Adrien? A crush I never knew about this whole time."

A burning realization set over him.

"Awww, man. That whole thing of _me_ having Adrien help me win Marinette over must've been super awkward for her. I screwed the pooch on that one even more than I thought!"

He cleared his mind, and refocused it on his current task. "Okay, so… Marinette actually has a crush on Adrien. Adrien… has a crush on Ladybug. And if Ladybug is Marinette, then that means… they're totally crushing on _each other_! And neither of them even knows it! Holy cow, this is so insane!" he proclaimed, gripping his hat tightly.

Everything seemed to be coming together… almost. Nino gazed at his wall chart, a sense of uncertainty still lingering. He unpinned the string between Chat Noir and Marinette… and for a split second, a mysterious thought in his head goaded him to pin it towards Adrien instead.

He let the string rest.

"Geez… why do I feel like I'm still missing an important piece of the puzzle somewhere here?"

* * *

"Nah, too baroque," said Plagg. "I thought you were going to a high-class dinner party, not Shakespeare in the Park."

Adrien sighed, and tossed a garment aside. He was in his bedroom, holding up different outfits in front of him while looking at the mirror. Plagg was stationery in the air behind him, trying his hardest to seem interested in the whole endeavor.

"I like that one."

"Of course you do, it's the same shade as your eyes," Adrien remarked. "Nah, I can't wear this one. It would stand out _way_ too much."

"Hmm, well excuse me for exercising an opinion. I don't get why humans make such a big deal over clothes, anyway. It just seems like a big waste of energy to me. That's why I never wear any."

"Yeah sure, that's the only reason." Adrien turned around to face Plagg. "Hey, by the way, what _were_ you up to yesterday, anyway? I really needed you back there, and it's not like you to just run off somewhere without telling me."

"Uhhh… I was… looking for food to eat?" Plagg replied. "I uhh, thought I smelled cupcakes in that boardroom."

"You sure?" asked Adrien, eyeing him suspiciously. "Because to me, it almost sounded like you were talking to somebody."

"Yeah, my inner demons."

"…Right."

Adrien turned around to get back to what he was doing. Plagg almost looked regretful at having to lie. Just then, a small white-colored Plagg with a halo appeared on his left shoulder.

"Plagg, you have to tell him the truth!" the angel pleaded. "You sold him out to Alya, and he deserves to know that!"

A red Plagg with devil horns appeared on his right shoulder.

"Nah, man! Forget that! Adrien would totally kill us. I say, it's better that we don't tell him."

"Stop arguing!" the angel shouted back. "Alya could put that on her website, and Adrien would find out anyway!"

"Blah, blah, blah," the devil mimicked. "Man, I'm hungry. Got any cheese?"

"I… I… Yeah, you're right. I could really go for some cheese too…"

"Now you're both just making me hungry," said Plagg.

"Huh?" asked Adrien.

"Nothing!"

"Come on Plagg, this is important!" Adrien scolded. "That dinner party is tonight, and I still haven't figured out what I'm going to wear! I don't want to look bad in front of all of my dad's guests, or in front of Marinette!"

"Y'know, I bet she's having just as much trouble picking out a dress as you are right now."

Adrien scoffed. "Are you kidding? Marinette? She's a fashion genius! I bet she was able to whip something up in no time at all!"

* * *

"AAAAAHHHH! I'm such a mess! I'll never figure out which one to make in time!"

Tikki dodged as a crumpled up paper sailed over her head and landed in the wastebasket. Marinette's whole room was filled with sketches of different dress designs, and all sorts of fabric colors lay neatly folded on the table in front of her, waiting to be spun into something magnificent.

But Marinette was in a creative slump. She eyed several of her sketches on the desk.

"Remember what Adrien said, Marinette," Tikki reminded. "Pick the one that looks the most like you. The one that just screams… Marinette! And looks as totally awesome as you are."

"That's the problem, Tikki," Marinette grumbled. "I can't just be myself. I have to be better than myself! I'll be representing the Agreste family as Adrien's date, and all those high-class socialities are going to be looking right at me! And so is Adrien." She thumped her head on the desk. "I really wish Alya were here right now…"

Tikki, looking concerned, took a look at the different sketches herself. Fixating on one in particular, she picked it up and held it in front of Marinette's face.

"How about this one? I really like the ribbons on it, and it would go great with the hairpiece you showed me."

"Tikki… that one just doesn't scream me. I designed it on a whim, and it's definitely a work-in-progress."

"Oh, okay," Tikki said dejectedly. "I was just trying to-"

But before she could finish her thought, Marinette swiped it and took a hard look at it.

"Actually… if I spruced up the front-end of it, redid the patterns on it, and… if I used these colors…"

Without another word, she plunged herself deep into designer mode. She took some red and black fabrics and began to make rapid progress with her sewing machine, sewing hems and stitching different patterns together like clockwork.

Tikki smiled warmly as she watched Marinette doing what she does best.

* * *

" _Plagg, CLAWS OUT!_ "

 _*whoosh* *swoog* *bing* *whiiiip*_

" _Time to go save everyone again! YAHOO!_ "

… … …

" _CLAWS OUT!_ "

 _*whoosh* *swoog* *bing* *whiiiip*_

" _Time to go save everyo-_ "

… … …

" _CLAWS OUT!_ "

 _*whoosh* *swoog* *bing* *whiiiip*_

…

She was playing the video over and over again. Almost like she was still trying to convince herself it was real.

Alya's eyes glimmered with fascination as she stared at her computer screen, absolutely enamored to have gotten this footage.

"This is so amazing… Adrien and Chat Noir… All of that stuff that his little 'Kwami' told me about… It's like I've solved half of all life's mysteries! This stuff would make the Ladyblog blow up like nothing else!"

She pondered at the still image she had rewinded and stopped at, the fierce look in Adrien's eye as he was about to say the words. It was a familiar expression Alya had seen before, and yet at the same time, it looked so distinctly Chat Noir.

Her smile faded as she considered her options.

" _Would it be a good idea to post this video on the Ladyblog? Or any of the other details I got from Plagg? No, no… that wouldn't be right at all. Adrien's my best friend, I wouldn't just tell the whole world about his secret without asking him. He probably didn't even want me to know, since we've been friends for so long and he's never said a word about it._

 _Should I tell him that I found him out, then? And that I have this video proof…? It would be a waste to have hid in that cabinet for nothing…_ "

Then… another thought crossed her mind.

" _What about Nino? Should I tell him? He's about as close with Adrien as I am with Marinette. He would probably want to know about this._

 _Ohhh, but that's the thing! What if he already knows? And if he does, maybe he'll be mad at me when he finds out I've been going through Adrien's stuff and filming him without his permission._ "

Poor Alya was giving herself a headache trying to wrap her head around this.

"In a weird way…" she said to herself out loud. "I almost wish I had _never_ looked at Adrien's phone…"

* * *

"How am I _ever_ going to get through this date!?" all four friends said at the same time.


	6. The Impossible Date

Adrien was the first to arrive.

A golden light washed over him, emanating from the windows of the grand hall where the Agreste party was to take place. Though a few party guests were filing in here and there, a couple of them taking a brief moment to greet Adrien before heading in, the place was not terribly busy as the festivities had not yet begun.

Adrien was pacing back and forth in front of the hall entrance, waiting desperately for his friends to arrive. For his final suit choice, he was wearing a mostly black ensemble, complete with a dark vest and an olive tie over a white-button shirt. A sheer green lining coated the inside of his dinner jacket, and soft green lines ran down his trousers.

"I hope this isn't too gaudy," he worried out loud.

"Don't worry, you look fantastic," Plagg assured him, popping up from his inside pocket. "Besides, it says it's a Gabriel original, so you're wearing your dad's best work."

"That's a funny way of putting it," Adrien mused. "I bet you all the money in my wallet it was actually Nathalie who approved this design."

"Well, look sharp, 'cause I think I see your date coming in, 9 o'clock!"

"We're in the evening, Plagg."

"Over there, you blockhead!" Plagg pointed.

A modest vehicle pulled up, Marinette's parents at the wheel. Let's spare Marinette the embarrassment and not go into detail about the various tidbits of advice her parents were trying to give her as she moved to open the door.

"Guys, please, that's enough," she pleaded with them. "I'll call you both when the party's all done, alright?"

"You got it, kiddo," her dad said, waving goodbye at her… and waving hello enthusiastically at Adrien.

"Now have fun you two, and don't be afraid to let loose!" her mother called out.

They just began to drive away, before suddenly pulling back as Sabine pulled down the window to shout…

"But not _too_ loose!"

…and then they drove off again.

Marinette turned around to face Adrien, who was able to see the full beauty of her self-made dress for the first time.

The entire dress was constructed of red and black patterns, from the straps to the skirt. It was adorned with ribbons jutting from the hem, in variant white and red. Her hair was done up in a bun, with more red and white ribbons flowing from the band.

"Oh! A-Adrien, hi!" she blurted, waving awkwardly. "Umm… I'm sorry about my parents! They seem to like embarrassing me in public…"

"Marinette, you look… absolutely amazing!" Adrien exclaimed.

Marinette almost fell backwards. "AAH! M-me? Amazing? Yeah, right!" she waved off. "You… totally look amazing too, Adrien! Yeah, like always! I mean, uh-"

Adrien looked back at her, puzzled. Marinette was already beginning to sweat.

"Ohhhh, where is Alya?"

* * *

Alya was walking up to the hall from down the sidewalk. On her end, she was wearing a glittery orange dress. Nothing too fancy, but she was sure to blend in with the rest of the crowd, and probably even be invisible next to whatever masterpiece Marinette made for herself.

She clutched her handbag and took a deep breath as she prepared to face her friends, including the boy whom she now knew as the fearless crusader Chat Noir. Alya wasn't sure she could ever face Adrien the same way again. But for her best friend Marinette…

"I'm sure gonna try."

She rounded the corner and spotted Marinette and Adrien amongst the gathering crowd. Putting on her best smile, she started to walk towards them. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted her boyfriend riding in on his scooter.

Nino wasn't looking so hot himself. As he took off his red helmet, Adrien looked over and shot a wave at him. Nino waved back, revealing his modest blue-colored suit and red tie.

Nino started to break a sweat however, when he saw Marinette. The red-and-black colors of her dress began to mess with his head, as he started to hallucinate Ladybug standing right in front of him.

" _I hope she doesn't think I'm acting like this because I'm crushing on her aga-_ "

His thoughts were cut short when he spotted Alya rounding the corner. Instinctively, he found himself ducking behind a bush, much to Adrien's confusion.

* * *

At the same time, Alya tried to focus by looking at Marinette as she walked up, ignoring Adrien.

" _Marinette's your friend, gotta support your friend, Alya. Don't pay attention to the fact that Chat Noir is standing right next to her…_ "

Her facial features began to contort as her mind scrambled, but she toughened it up when Marinette looked her way and flashed a smile. Alya smiled back.

" _If nothing else, Marinette has an infectious smile. It's hard not to smile back whenever you-_ "

But that's when Alya saw Nino getting off of his scooter and strutting towards them. Suddenly feeling herself panic, Alya quickly ran back to the side of the hall away from eyesight, just at the same moment Nino leapt into the bush.

"Huh?" said Marinette, now sharing Adrien's bewildered look.

* * *

"I haven't seen Nino since I found out Adrien was Chat!" Alya moaned. "What am I supposed to say to him!?"

* * *

"Alya's right there, and I don't even know if she knows Marinette is Ladybug!" Nino fretted. "And I don't know if she wants me to know! But I know that Marinette probably doesn't want me to know! I think! I don't know!"

* * *

They both sighed.

"Let's do this…" they both said to themselves.

* * *

Marinette and Adrien still looked confused as Nino and Alya slowly crept out and walked up, both of them looking strangely fidgety and nervous.

"Alya! I'm glad you could make it," said Marinette. "I was starting to get really worried."

"Oh, pssh! No problem! Like, I wouldn't be there for my best friend? And wow girl, that dress is amazing! It looks totally you, just like I said!"

"Thanks, Alya," she said, blushing.

Alya forced herself to glance Adrien's way, and cleared her throat. "Adrien. How are… you tonight?"

"Hey, Alya. I'm doing alright, I guess."

"Oh, that's _purr_ fect- I MEAN, perfect!"

"…Okay." He shrugged it off and turned to his right. "'Sup, Nino?"

"What's hanging, bro?" Nino replied, fist-bumping him. His cool demeanor withered however when he turned to Marinette. "Hey, Mar- Marinette! Lovely night for superheroing- I MEAN, for dancing and partying, right?"

"Sure, I guess…" Marinette chuckled.

" _Oh, this is going to go just fine…_ " Nino and Alya both thought to themselves.

* * *

The uncomfortable atmosphere did _not_ cease when they were finally seated at a table inside. If anything, things were even more awkward now.

Adrien and Marinette were sat next to each other, and poor Marinette was sweating buckets. Nino and Alya quietly ate across from them, their eyes bouncing around everywhere except for what was in front of them.

Everyone was tense, for different reasons. For Adrien, he only felt unnerved because… everyone else around him was creeping him out. He took a sip of water, and glanced awkwardly between everyone, looking like the one kid who wasn't in on a joke.

"So… how about that science homework, huh?" he finally said, trying to break the ice. "Pretty hard this week, isn't it?"

"Sure is," said Nino, seeming to loosen up. "I think Ms. Mendeleiev feeds off of our tears."

He chuckled at this thought, as did the other three softly. But once the laughter died down… it became quiet again. Nino's smile faltered when Marinette looked at him, and he subconsciously felt his eye twitch.

"Our lacrosse team sure is doing well this season," Adrien noted, now looking to Alya. "Think they'll make the playoffs, Alya?"

"Mm-hm!" Alya responded in-between rapid bites of breadsticks. "Umm, totally! Heh-heh!"

" _Well, that's two people jazzed up,_ " Adrien thought. " _I wonder what Marinette's so anxious about…?_ "

Marinette had been avoiding eye contact with him throughout the entire night. Adrien began to worry she was going to burst from how red her face was getting. For some reason, it was getting even redder now that he was looking right at her.

"Hey, Marinette. Check this out."

Adrien proceeded to unravel his silverware. He took an olive from one of the complimentary bowls on the table, placed it on the end of his fork, and then flung it. It flew high above his head, but he caught it right in-between his teeth.

Marinette finally broke her restraint and began to giggle, and Alya clapped.

"He loves to do that one all the time," said Nino, smiling while rolling his eyes.

"I used to practice doing that all the time when I was a kid," Adrien said confidently. "Always made my mom laugh, especially that one time when I missed and it landed in my nose instead."

"Is that all you can do?" Marinette laughed.

"Hand me my rapier and I'll show you how nuts I can _really_ get with flinging things around," Adrien retorted.

Everyone laughed heartily, the uneasiness in the room seeming to finally disperse.

"You should let me film that sometime," Alya remarked. "I bet that would make a great video on YouTube."

"Hey speaking of which, how's the Ladyblog coming along, Alya?" Marinette asked.

Nino tensed up. Good vibes gone.

"Oh, the blog is fantastic!" Alya beamed. "I've had comments from people saying that they love the new video layout! I'm on the cusp of putting on some features, maybe even a 'database' on all the akumas Ladybug's fought!"

"Sounds stellar," said Adrien.

"I can't wait until the message board is fully implemented. Imagine, a whole community of us spending the whole day just chatting and gushing about how awesome Ladybug is!"

"That would be great! I'd totally join a board like that," Adrien replied. "An awesome place for people to talk about an awesome hero!"

Marinette squeaked. Nino was about to make a remark until that noise caused him to double back, and realize what was happening.

" _Dang, yo. He's complimenting Ladybug right in front of her…_ "

"I know, right?" Alya went on. "Ladybug's done so many great things for this city, she deserves only the best from her fans."

"You know…" Nino cut in. "Ladybug's an awesome person and all, but I think her partner Chat Noir deserves some credit too."

Adrien's face lit up.

"I guess," Marinette shrugged. "Chat's a pretty cool guy too, but… between you and me, it always looks to me like he only does half the work, and Ladybug usually has to tell him what to do…"

Nino winced up, not sure what sort of game Marinette was playing. He was determined not to be deterred by Ladybug herself, however.

"Au contraire! Personally, Chat Noir strikes me as the real brains of the bunch. His great ideas have saved the city of Paris countless times! I want to be just like him, man!"

Marinette grumbled, much to Nino's amusement. "Nino, if you were to look at the big picture, I think you'll find that it's Ladybug who-"

"I for one agree with our friend Nino here!" Adrien suddenly interjected. "Maybe more people _should_ recognize the importance of Chat Noir's role on the team!"

"Uhhh…" from Alya.

"Cause Nino's right, he _does_ have a lot of great ideas! Tell me this, who was the one who led Ladybug through the darkness and saved her from Stormy Weather's icy hail, huh? That's right, Chat Noir! Yeah!"

He did a fist motion in the air for punctuation. When he opened his eyes, he realized everyone at the table was staring at him… and everyone else in the dining room.

"Heh-heh… ehh, wow. Figures that the only way we were able to light up this conversation was to talk about people who aren't us, huh?"

* * *

Alya thrust open the restroom door and rushed to the sink. Removing her glasses, she splashed water over her face.

"I can't keep doing this, I just can't keep doing this…" she was repeating to herself.

Marinette followed her inside.

"Alya, are you alright?" she asked.

"I'm fine, Marinette."

"You sure? It seems like you've been… sort of on edge the whole night. And I thought _I_ was going to be the edgy one."

"I'm fine, Marinette, really," Alya answered, rubbing her eyes. "It's just… I just can't look at Adrien, especially when he's doing _that_."

"Doing… what?" Marinette wondered, scratching her head.

"Just forget it, okay. Forget I said anything." She put her glasses back on, but that just made her frantic glare more obvious.

"Alya, what's going on? What do you mean you can't 'look at Adrien like that'?" She waited for an answer, but Alya stubbornly pouted. Marinette gasped. "Alya, you're not… in love with Adrien, are you?"

"What? No! No, no, no way, of course not!" Alya yelped, shaking her hands. "I would never do that to you girl, believe me."

"Well then, what is it? Tell me!"

"No, it's… it's just… it's something I can't talk about, alright?"

"But we're friends, aren't we? Why are you keeping this a secret from me?"

Alya heaved, looking guiltily at her friend.

"Wait, it's not… is it something that if I knew, I would think less of Adrien for? Like, I would think he's a bad person if I knew?"

Alya began to chuckle. "No, nothing like that. In fact, if anything… you'd probably think he was even _more_ amazing."

"Well, now you've got me curious, Alya," Marinette rebutted, hands on her hips. "And I'm not leaving until you tell me."

Alya had her hands over her head, and started to become very disgruntled.

"Marinette, I… It's something that, that I really want to tell you what it is, but… I just… I just don't think Adrien would want anyone to find out about! It's just… I can't- **I'M SORRY!** "

All of a sudden, she brushed past Marinette and bolted out the door.

"ALYA!"


	7. The Missteps We Take

The fork trembled as Nino struggled to hold it steady. The olive was hanging on for dear life.

"You just gotta hold it steady, Nino," Adrien instructed. "Balance it firmly, and then just swing it upwards, don't even think about it…"

Nino flung the olive high in the air. However, Alya rushed through the room at that point, and Nino was so distracted, the olive hit him in the eye instead.

"Ow! Alya?"

Marinette ran back to the table, desperately out of breath.

"What's wrong with Alya?" asked Nino.

"I don't… I don't know… She just panicked all of a sudden and ran out…"

"Ohh, man!" Nino exclaimed.

"Should we go out there and see if she's okay?" asked Adrien.

"I'll go," said Nino.

He got up from his seat and ran off after Alya. Marinette, not sure what else to do, decided to sit at the table in their place.

"I hope Alya's alright," Marinette worried. "I've never seen her act this way before."

"Yeah," Adrien agreed. A brief silence ensued between them, before he turned to Marinette and said slyly, "I guess now it's just the two of us, huh?"

There are tomatoes that don't grow as red as Marinette's cheeks did at that moment.

* * *

Alya hadn't run far. When Nino came out of the hall, Alya was sitting on a bench outside.

"Alya?"

"Oh! Nino," Alya gasped, whipping her head around. "I- I'm sorry for running out like that."

"It's cool."

Nino took a seat next to her on the bench and wrapped his arm around her. Alya wasn't crying, but she looked sad about something.

"I didn't mean to worry you guys. Really. I'm just… kinda having a hard time right now."

"Is it something you can talk about with me?"

"Oh, Nino…" she looked up at his concerned face and tried to think. But her mind wasn't up to it. "I don't know if I can, Nino… It has something to do with Adrien."

"Adrien?" Nino repeated back. "Why, what's…?"

Alya took a big, long sigh before she continued.

"I found out something about Adrien the other day that's changed my whole attitude around him. It's… nothing bad at all. Honestly! Adrien's still a cool guy. It's just…" Another sigh. "It's a secret that I can't share with anyone, because I would never betray a friend like that." Yet another one. "And yet… I feel like if I kept secrets from you, that wouldn't be good either. We made a promise, after all. You and me…"

Nino stared down at the floor, considering Alya's words.

"You probably have no idea what all this is like, having a big secret you know about a friend and not being sure who to trust with it…"

Nino turned back to her, and deliberated in his own mind. A certain expression of guilt came over him.

"Actually…" he responded, in the same melancholy tone as hers. "I do know what that's like."

"Huh?"

"Well… to tell you the truth, I actually know something about Marinette."

"Marinette?" Alya's expression turned to intrigue. "Marinette… shared a secret with you?"

"Well, sort of," he explained, scratching his head. "It's, kind of- something I discovered on my own, but she told me part of it. But I also, know more about it than she knows. And I've been kinda- tossing my whole head around trying to figure out if I should tell you about it. You being her best friend and all."

"Huh…" Alya gazed back at him for a second, almost like she was on the cusp of realizing something, but simply stared ahead instead. "That is funny. I guess this explains why you seemed nervous at that party."

"And why _you_ were."

Alya chuckled. "Yeah! Wow, strange world. So both of us found out something. And now we're at a crossroads…"

They both stared forward for a bit. The Eiffel Tower could be seen in the far distance, lit up and glowing on this fine night. Everything was tranquil. Besides a few fireflies dancing around in the sky, Paris seemed completely still.

Nino bit his lip thinking about something, and turned to Alya again.

"Should we… get it out of the way, then?"

"Hmm?"

"If… you and I both know secrets about our friends… should we you know, confide in each other and stuff? I guess that way, we're not breaking our promise or anything like that? I don't want you to think that you can't trust me, Alya."

"I guess you have a point…"

Alya reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. Nino looked at it, puzzled at what she was doing. She thumbed over to where her saved videos were, and was about to click something…

"You know what, Nino? For the sake of our friends…"

…but instead, she backed out of it. Back to her home screen: a picture of herself and Marinette making silly faces at the camera.

"…let's not. You're right. We did make a promise, with each other. But we also have another important promise to keep."

Nino looked down and sighed.

"Our friends," Alya continued. "It would be wrong of us to betray our friends too. I think… I think the fact that we both admitted this much to each other is enough to keep our promise."

A soft smile crossed Nino's lips. "Yeah. I guess you're right, Alya. You're always right," he giggled.

"Hey now, don't be trying to flirt your way out of this," Alya giggled back.

Once the giggles died down, they grew quiet again. Nino could tell that Alya was still feeling uneasy.

"Tell ya what," Nino said softly. "How about I at least take you home?"

"That… would be nice," Alya replied, smiling back at him. "Thank you, Nino."

* * *

 _Pitter-patter. Pitter-patter. Pitter-patter._

Tapping her fingers at the table was all Marinette could do to keep her brain from melting. She wasn't sure whether she was living her best dream… or her worst nightmare.

" _I'm here now. On a real date with Adrien, but… I'm all alone. No Alya. No Tikki. No one else to help me through this but myself. I'm probably going to make a fool of myself before the night's over! And that's if I don't sweat this whole dress off first._ "

Adrien meanwhile, was just trying to play it cool. He rested his hand on the table as he leaned back, looking to see if Nino and Alya had come back. He noticed Marinette's anxiety, but for some reason, she seemed to get worse whenever he made eye contact, so he was trying to avoid looking at her.

It was a painfully quiet scene at that table, which was only reprieved when the chef finally came over wheeling four plates of food with him.

"Dinner is served!" he declared. "Beef bourguignon, blanquette de veau, freshly-cooked lobster with Garbure lou trebuc… and finally, steak and chips."

He set the steaming plates of food on the table. Adrien's mouth was practically salivating from all the delicious food.

"Now who ordered the Crème brûlée?"

"Oh, yum!" Adrien beamed, eyeing every plate of food with equally glowing eyes. He excitedly grabbed his fork and knife and set his eyes on the Beef bourguignon. "I can't wait to dig right in!"

"Attention, everyone?" the MC suddenly called out. "May I have your attention, please?"

Everyone in the grand hall turned to face him, including Adrien whose first bite of food was inches away from his mouth.

"I'd like to thank for everyone for coming to this party tonight on behalf of Gabriel Agreste and the amazing success of the Gabriel fashion brand! It is unfortunate that Gabriel Agreste himself could not make the time to join us tonight, I'm sure you must all be gravely disappointed."

"Now my dad's colleagues know how _I_ feel every day…" Adrien muttered. Marinette shot him a look of concern.

"That being said, I hope everyone has had a lovely dinner…"

"Had a lovely dinner? But our food just arrived?" Marinette asked the chef.

"We, uh… had problems getting your entire platter ready," he explained. "The steak, in particular. We weren't sure at what wellness to cook it. Whoever ordered it never specified."

"Nino," Adrien seethed.

"…because now, it's DANCE time!" the MC continued.

"Please, not now!" Adrien begged. "I'd rather not let all this yummy-looking food go to waste."

"ADRIEN AGRESTE!" the MC barked as in on cue, pointing right at the young model. "As the representative of your father and the celebration of his stupendous legacy tonight, why don't you and your date lead us in our first number?"

"Lead?" Marinette bleated. "A-as in… d-d-dancing!?"

"Bu- But I haven't even started eating-"

"Come on down, you two!" the MC motioned.

Right on cue, a couple of dance ushers came over, and Adrien and Marinette found themselves being dragged away from their table.

"No, no, please… **NO**!" Adrien cried, reaching out for his beloved food.

* * *

 _Pitter-patter. Pitter-patter. Pitter-patter._

The rain was tapping over the windows of the bus. It was gradual at first, a few drops here and there. But it was a full shower by the time the bus was reaching the suburbs.

Nino drew a blanket over Alya, something to keep her warm over her sparkling dress.

"Thank you, Nino," she said warmly, resting her head on his shoulders.

"Anything for you, sweetheart," he crooned. "You okay?"

"Yeah…" she replied back, drearily. "I'm still kind of thinking about things. Whether… it'd really be a good idea to keep these secrets bottled up."

"Mm."

They both watched the rain collecting over the windows. In a way, it made the Paris cityscape look even more beautiful, seeing the light of the buildings reflecting off of the raindrops through the window. Like a ray of hope shining through the dreariness around it, completely unfettered.

"I guess we should just… do what's best for our friends," Alya continued. "Think about their feelings, about our friendships… Maybe some secrets are good to be let out…" She was beginning to sound sleepy, Nino noticed. "Sometimes you want to tell someone something important, keep things from getting bottled up and exploding into something bad…"

Her hand, which had previously been clutching her phone, drooped, and her phone fell onto Nino's lap. Nino trembled as he gazed at her home screen: still the same picture of Marinette and Alya being goofy.

"But you can never get the words out, because you just don't know how they'd react…"

A notification appeared on her phone. An automated update from the Ladyblog. By coincidence, the website's icon, a picture of Ladybug, covered up Marinette's face.

"Sometimes… that's when you need the help of a friend, to do the hard stuff for you… And save that friendship before they find out the hard way…"

Nino bit his lip again. Another difficult decision presented itself.

"Alya…"

"Mm?" she groggily replied back.

"I think…" Nino gulped. "I think I need to tell you… About Marinette. Look, I don't know how to say this Alya, but the thing is… Marinette is L-"

All of a sudden, Alya's eyes sprung open and she leapt up in her seat.

"Oh my gosh! I just realized! _Marinette_! We totally left her alone in there! With Adrien! We totally went up and ditched them both! OHHHH, NO! How could we do that to them!?"

"Hey, hey! Relax, Alya! Chill!" Nino grabbed her by the arms, trying to get her to calm down. "I-I'm sure they're fine. What sort of terrible thing could we have left them to do, anyway?"

* * *

"OW! Marinette!"

"Sorry, sorry, I'm so sorry!"

Marinette was struggling to keep up a rhythm. She'd had dancing experience for sure. The ballet classes her mother had her go through were a valuable experience for her as a child, and it came back in an unexpected way when Marinette's superhero career called for that level of grace and agility.

The problem here was that she had never danced with Adrien Agreste before. That warm, friendly smile of his with his beautiful blonde hair flowing in the air made all of Marinette's confidence melt down almost as fluidly as the sweat was coming down her skin.

Hence the constant-

"OW!"

"Sorry!" she yelped again. "I really don't mean to keep stepping on your foot, Adrien!"

"It's fine Marinette, really," Adrien chuckled. "You're still not as bad as- OW! Chloé was when she tricked me into being her partner at that one- OW! school dance."

" _I remember that crushing rejection all too well,_ " Marinette thought. " _I was trying to ask you out first and she shut me out…_ "

"Not only did she step on my foot a lot, but she also- OW! kept trying to lead suddenly. Heh. Still got a bit of pain in my neck from when she tried to dip me and I ended up crashing into the punch bowl."

"That sounds awful," Marinette remarked.

"Ehh, I've been through worst scrapes. OW!"

"Sorry! I can't imagine what could be worse than _that_ , though."

Adrien just gave her a smirk in return.

" _You'd be surprised, princess…_ " he thought.

"Just look at that darling couple!" the MC declared, gesturing in Marinette and Adrien's direction. "I'm sure if Gabriel Agreste were here right now, he'd be proud of his young entourage! Let's hear it for a spectacular Gabriel ball!"

"Everybody's looking at us, Adrien," Marinette whispered.

"They're looking at your dress," Adrien corrected her. "I told you everyone would think it's stunning. I wouldn't be surprised if your parents at the bakery start getting calls from some of these guys after tonight."

"Y-you think my dress is really that great?"

"I know so, Marinette. You're a fantastic designer."

Marinette's eyes glistened.

"…OW! Okay, that one did hurt a little."

* * *

"Well, thanks a lot for the offer, Ms. Césaire, but I think I might just head out. I just wanted to make sure she got home okay. I'm just gonna go in her room really quick and grab my bag."

"Do you need help finding it?" a voice called out.

"Yeah, no. It's just right here on top of her computer," Nino called back. He went to pick his knapsack up off the keyboard…

*click*

" _You can explain later! Right now, there's an akuma attacking! Plagg, CLAWS OUT!_ "

"… … …"


	8. Replay

Alya awoke to a large white blur. She tried to focus her vision to determine what she was looking at… only to realize she wasn't wearing her glasses. Feeling around, she found them on a coffee table next to her and finally realized she was staring at her living room ceiling.

"Ugghh… home?" She sat up on the couch. "How did… how did I get here? Did Nino bring me home?"

"Mm-hmm," answered her mother, walking in from another room. "He said you fell asleep while you were both on the bus, so he took you in himself and laid you down."

"Huh."

"You're lucky to have him, Alya," Marlena Césaire chuckled. "He's very good to you, and he cares a whole lot about you. You should hold on to him and never let go. So, how was the date?"

"It was… fine, I guess," Alya answered, still groggy. "Is Nino still here?"

Marlena nodded, fashioning her chef outfit on as she prepared to leave for her job.

"He was going to go back home, but I guess he was still worried about you because he changed his mind and decided to stay the night. He's actually up in your room right now. Watching some video about Chat Noir, I think?"

* * *

As Alya crept close to her room, the sounds she heard from her computer confirmed her fears.

" _Time to save everyone again!" *clang* "whoosh* YAHOO!"_

Alya poked her head in, to see that Nino was indeed sitting at her desk, having watched the video. His back was to her, so she had trouble reading what his expression was. His hat was off. He was about to hit the "Replay" button, when Alya took a deep breath and knocked on her doorframe.

"Oh! Alya!" Nino gasped. By reflex, he immediately shut her monitor off. "I, um… I wasn't doing anything, I swear!"

"Nino," she said, crossing her arms. "It's okay. I saw."

Nino sighed. "I'm… I'm really sorry, Alya. I didn't mean to stumble upon, well… this. I was just trying to get my bag off last night because I was gonna jet, and then I kind of, turned your computer on by mistake and it was… playing the video already."

Alya looked down at her phone, which was connected to a sync cable.

"And you plugged my phone in to my computer when you got here, so it was uploading my videos to it… or _video_ , and playing them back when you turned it on," she gathered. She glanced at the thumbnail of the video: Adrien in mid-transformation. "Nino… I'm really sorry I never told you..."

"It's cool," he replied back, strangely calmly. "I actually, sort of get why you didn't," he chuckled.

"You're not… shocked by any of this?" Alya asked.

"Well, obviously I was at first," said Nino, staring at the image. "I mean, when I first saw it, I couldn't tell if it was real or if you and Adrien were doing some sort of special effects video. But then, I started thinking about it, and well… the more I thought about it, the more it made sense that Adrien and Chat were the same person."

"What do you mean?"

"Well for one thing, Adrien just… out and disappears all the time! He runs away from everyone else when there's an akuma attacking, sometimes he'll make up an excuse on the fly and then just buzz off! Oh yeah, and I don't know how I didn't see this, but he makes puns all the time just like Chat Noir!"

"Oh, no!" Alya laughed. "Does he make just as many silly cat puns _out_ of costume?"

"Well… not as much of those, but like… we were lab partners once in Ms. Mendeleiev's class, and he just leans in and goes, 'I guess she put us together because we have such great _chemistry_ , huh?'"

"Oh my gosh."

"That's a day in the life with Adrien Agreste right there. But here's another kooky thing, he always brags about how cool Chat Noir is. About how he's the bravest hero around, and how everyone in Paris should look up to him instead of 'lame old Adrien'. Like that nonsense he was tooting last night by saying that Chat's a better partner than Marinette and is always saving _her_ from trouble! That's something he does all the time, totally an Adrien thing! Oh! But you know what else?"

He pressed "Replay" on the video and paused at a spot where Plagg was visible in the frame.

"See, I always thought I could hear a tiny voice talking to Adrien through his locker sometimes. I even thought I heard it in his room once when I went over to hang at his mansion. I guess _that's_ the thing I heard?" he surmised, pointing at Plagg.

"Yeah," Alya nodded. "That thing is where he gets his superhero powers from. It said it was called a 'Kwami'."

"Wait, you actually got to talk to it?"

"Yup. I bargained it for an interview, and he told me everything. About how his powers work, why he chose Adrien to be a hero, how long the Kwamis have been helping people… But I still can hardly believe it. I guess I always _suspected_ Adrien might be Chat Noir…" She flipped over to a picture on her phone of Adrien, where she had drawn Chat's outfit over him. "I even drew this picture once because I thought I was onto something. But still, Chat Noir was in our class the _whole_ time and we never figured it out."

"Yeah. Ladybug too." Then Nino caught himself. "Err, I mean… what about Ladybug? Did the Kwami tell you anything about her?"

"Yeah, that's where it gets even stranger. He didn't know _anything_." Nino looked back at her, confused. "Like, he couldn't tell me anything about her because he doesn't even _know_ who Ladybug is!"

"So wait, are you saying that… Chat Noir doesn't know who his own superhero partner is? But- but how!? They've been fighting together for so long, and they don't even know each other!?"

Alya threw her hands up as if to say "You got me!" Nino wiped his hand through his hair as he tried to wrap his head around this.

" _I don't believe it… so Adrien really doesn't know who Ladybug is, even though he's in love with her and she sits right behind him every day! They went on a date together last night!_ "

As he tried to assess this information, he glanced over at the video again, and another thought occurred to him.

"Hold up. You weren't… going to post this on the Ladyblog, were you?"

"Oh, no, no! For heaven's sake, no!" Alya rebuffed. "I mean, I guess for a _brief_ moment I was considering it, but Adrien's my friend too and I wouldn't do that to him _or_ you!" She grew more solemn. "I wanted to tell you all along, Nino. I really did. From the moment I found out. But… it was hard. I just couldn't figure out how to go about it. Heck, I didn't even know if you knew already! I mean, you two are such close friends."

"Hmmm, maybe not if he never shared _this_ huge part of his life with me…" Nino muttered.

"Nino…" She gently massaged his shoulders as she tried to ease his sorrow. "I'm sure Adrien must have his own reasons for keeping it a secret from you, and me, and… all of us, really. Ladybug's probably the same way. I bet her friends and family don't know who she really is under the mask either."

Nino reacted with flared eyebrows, and glanced towards Alya for a brief second, as this statement of hers confirmed another mystery for him.

" _Wow, so Alya_ doesn't _know that Marinette is Ladybug. She's just as clueless about it as I was with… Adrien… That would be so awkward if I told her…_ "

He glanced around Alya's room, the amount of Ladybug memorabilia scattered about suddenly beginning to make him uncomfortable. Probably the most damning piece was the corkboard where she had pinned up a picture of herself and Ladybug, one of the rare times Ladybug had time enough to agree to a photo-op. …And it was placed _right_ next to Alya and Marinette smiling in a similar photo.

"I… I think I have to go, Alya," he choked out.

"Are- are you sure?"

"Yeah. I think I just need to lie down for a while and kind of, let this all sit in my head," he said.

"O-okay. See you around, Nino."

"Yup. Bye, Alya."

He grabbed his bag and headed out of her room. He continued walking down the hallway when something began to eat at him.

" _Maybe some secrets are good to be let out…_ " Alya's words echoed in his mind. " _Sometimes you want to tell someone something important … But you can never get the words out, because you just don't know how they'd react…_ "

A worried sweat ran down Nino's face.

" _Sometimes that's when you need the help of a friend, to do the hard stuff for you… And save that friendship before they find out the hard way…_ "

Nino stopped walking.

" _Imagine how devastated she'd be if she were to find out on her own…_ " he realized.

* * *

"Alya," said Nino, poking his head back in.

"Yeah?"

Alya was now sitting at the computer herself. Nino gulped, still not sure how he was planning to do this.

"I think there's… something…" He cleared his throat. "Something you should know about… Marinette."

"Huh? Like… what?"

Nino's eyes drifted to her computer screen, where he noticed for the first time that Alya had the Ladyblog open. A big image of Ladybug's face highlighted the article she was reading.

"She's, well… Umm. The thing I have to tell you is…"

He once again looked over at her corkboard. At the picture of Ladybug and Alya. And then at the picture of Marinette and Alya. Their hands locked together. Their thumbs wiggling each other's to symbolize their close bond.

Their matching friendship bracelets.

" _No more secrets._ "

" _I would never betray a friend like that._ "

"Nino? What is it?" Alya asked again. "What is it you have to tell me?"

"Marinette, uh… told me that she loves Adrien!" he blurted out, having shifted his confession at the last second. "Yeah, yeah, that's all! She told me she has a crush on Adrien and that's the big thing I wanted to tell you! Yup, nothing more than that!"

"Huh." Alya stared back at him for a second, and then her eyes narrowed, like she suspected something. "That's odd…" Nino began to sweat a bit, but then she responded… "See, I don't know why, but I guess I kind of thought you had figured that out already."

Oh, heh-heh! Well, I guess I was being a bit dumb," he chuckled nervously. "I mean, when you think about it, she was a tad obvious about it."

" _Very_ obvious."

"Ehhh, heh-heh…"

"Well, that's good that she told you, I suppose. I guess she decided you deserved to know that. Actually, yeah, good on Marinette for being honest about it!" She stood up, feeling empowered for her friend. "That's my girl! Maybe with a little bit more confidence, she could finally tell Adrien himself how she feels!"

"Yeah, heh-heh, right! I mean, unless with him being Chat Noir, he still has feelings for Ladybug instead, who's totally not… umm, duhh, you know that, I'd better get going! Peace!"

With that, he took off. This time for real. Alya was flummoxed.

Just then, her phone started to ring. She spun her chair back around to see that Marinette was trying to call her.

She picked it up, and put her finger over it, about to answer…

But she hesitated.

She looked up again at her computer. She minimized the Ladyblog, and gazed at the video of Adrien's transformation. Nino's words struck a chord.

" _Unless with him being Chat Noir, he still has feelings for Ladybug instead!_ "

…

…

…

 _BEEP._

"Hey, Alya…? If you're awake, can you please pick up?"

…

"O-okay, I… I hope you're not mad at me or anything? I was just worried about you, is all. You didn't seem like yourself last night. If you- if you get this message, can you please call me back? I just want to talk. … Thanks, Alya. Bye."

 _BEEP._

Alya just sunk her head back, still staring at the video of Adrien. Chat Noir.

The boy whose heart belonged to Ladybug.


	9. Beneath the Masks

"If you- if you get this message, can you please call me back? I just want to talk. … Thanks, Alya. Bye."

Marinette pressed the button to hang up and let her phone drop out of her hand onto the table. She then threw her head down in disappointment. Luckily, there was no one else inside the Dupain-Cheng's bakery to witness her emotional troubles.

"I have no idea what happened, but I feel like it's all my fault."

"Don't say that, Marinette," Tikki flew out to say. "You didn't do anything wrong."

"It sure feels like it."

Tikki heard a noise and slipped back into Marinette's pouch, just as Tom Dupain emerged from the kitchen with a freshly-baked loaf of bread in his mitts.

"Hey, kiddo!" he said when he saw Marinette. "Your mom and I missed you last night. How did your little date go?"

"It was fine," Marinette replied, not lifting her head up.

Tom frowned. "Kiddo," he said, pulling up a chair next to her. "Come on. Let me see that face."

Hesitantly, Marinette lifted her face and turned to look at him with a deep frown.

"There it is. Now why don't you tell me how things _really_ went? What happened, Marinette?" he asked.

Marinette sighed. "Everything _seemed_ to be going fine. I was starting to feel confident, I even laughed a little with Adrien and Nino, but then Alya was suddenly upset for some reason. Nino had to take her home, and now she's not answering any of my calls. I don't know what happened, but I feel like I did something wrong."

Tom considered these words and leaned in, arms crossed. "That _is_ a pickle. Have you tried talking to Nino? He's the one who you said Alya's dating, right?"

"Actually, that's the funny thing. Nino's been acting really weird too the past couple of days. Every time I talked to him, he seems to be really nervous about something."

"Hmmm. So that's two friends in a quandary, then. Well, did you and Adrien at least have a good time?"

Marinette groaned loudly. "There's almost no doubt in my mind Adrien's mad at me after I kept stepping on his foot last night when the DJ forced us to dance. Oh man, if anything, I should definitely go and apologize to _him_!"

"Sounds like you have a _lot_ of friends that could use your help right now."

"Yeah, but I can't be in a thousand places at once. I can't be everyone's hero…" she said remorsefully.

"You don't _need_ to be everyone's hero, Marinette. These things take time, and from my experience, they often have a way of working themselves out. Not every problem your mother and I have had with each other just went away overnight. Sometimes we just… had to wait things out and then talk about it afterwards."

Marinette finally began to smile. "Thanks, dad. You're right. I guess I shouldn't always try to think about what Ladybug would do."

"That's the spirit. Y'know, Ladybug has it easy. She can solve all of her problems with magic. It's Marinette who has to put time, effort, and patience into making things right."

Marinette let herself chuckle a bit. Her father smiled warmly back at her, and as he stood up, he gazed out the storefront window.

"In fact, you know what? Maybe you should start with Adrien."

"What makes you say that?"

"Well for one thing, you said he's the one who's probably the most upset with you. So, it would probably help to talk to him first, right?"

Marinette's lip squeezed. "I guess you're right. I just have to think about how I should do that."

"Well, you'd better make it quick because it looks like he's about to walk in right now."

"Wait, WHAT!?" Marinette exclaimed, her eyes bulging out.

The store bell rang as Adrien walked into the shop.

"Oh, hey Mr. Dupain. Hey, Marinette," Adrien greeted.

Marinette straightened up in an instant.

"Hey-hey, Adrien! Umm, how'd you figure out where I live?"

Adrien raised an eyebrow. "I've… been to your house before?"

"Oh yeah, of course, that's right! Exactly three times, in fact! I always keep track. I mean… I'm really good at remembering things like that!" she said at a thousand words a minute.

Tom chuckled. "He's been here a few more times than _that_ , Marinette. Would you like some cookies to go, Adrien?"

"Uhhh… not today, Mr. Dupain. Just one will do today." He paused. "…Actually, make it two."

After he closed the door behind him, Adrien turned back to Marinette. He pulled up a seat across from her.

"I actually came here to talk to you about something, Marinette," he said softly.

"You wanted to… to talk to _meee_?" Marinette bleated. "Wh-what about? Oh no, is this the whole 'stepping on your feet' thing? I'm really, really sorry about that, Adrien-"

"No, no, don't worry about it," Adrien interjected, waving his hands. "I told you, it's fine. I'm not mad about that. But… it's about Nino."

"Nino?"

"Yeah. He's been acting kinda weird lately. And actually, have… you been noticing Alya being weird in any way? The way she just ran off last night was very strange."

"Yeah," Marinette replied. "I'm not sure what her problem was."

"This is going to sound weird, but I… feel like she's trying to avoid me."

"You?"

"Yeah. She barely looked at me at all last night, and she's been very… flighty lately."

Marinette pondered on this, and as she did, she realized something else.

"You know what? Now that you bring it up, Nino's been acting sorta the same way… with _me_."

"You think they're okay? I'm getting kinda worried that there's something going on between them. Something we know nothing about."

"Well, what should we do?" asked Marinette. "Should we try finding them and confronting them about it, together? Well I mean, not together like, you and I, but I meant like-"

Then, the bell above the door rang again. They both turned around, and Adrien was surprised when he saw who it was.

"Nino!" he exclaimed. "There you are. Where have you been, buddy?"

Nino gulped in surprise when he saw both Adrien and Marinette sitting together. His mind immediately saw his two favorite superheroes, Ladybug and Chat Noir, sitting at a table and looking at him. He shook his head as he tried to cool himself down. When he opened his eyes again, he just saw two of his best friends.

" _This is a dumb idea. This is a dumb idea. This is a dumb idea,_ " Nino's thoughts repeated.

"Uhh, hey, Ch- Adr- G-guys!" Nino winced at his Freudian slip. Luckily, neither of them seemed to notice it.

" _This is such a dumb idea._ "

He nervously approached them.

"Hey uh, Marinette, if it's alright, can I talk to you about something in private?"

"In… private?" Marinette repeated, confused.

"Huh?" Adrien uttered.

"I'm having a problem right now, and you're… sort of the only person I can talk to about it."

"Well… we can go up to my room if you want."

"That'd be great," he said. He turned to Adrien. "Sorry, bro. It's just something personal."

"No, that's cool Nino. You guys can talk, I'll just keep waiting here for my cookies."

Once they had left, Plagg flew out.

"Wooowwww. What do you suppose _that_ was about?"

"Got me," said Adrien.

* * *

"Well, it's… it's kind of hard to explain."

Nino twiddled his thumbs as he sat on Marinette's bed. Marinette sat on her computer chair looking back at him.

"Well, try the best you can," she said. "No pressure."

"I've… found out something about a friend of mine. A pretty big secret."

"Who?"

"Well… um… it's… Aaaaaalix," he lied.

"Alix?"

"Yeah, Alix!" His eyes darted back and forth a bit, like he was trying to figure out if this was a good path to proceed on. "So… here's what went down. I kind of, figured out a secret of hers by accident. And she's my friend, so obviously I don't want to tell anybody about it. But the thing is…" He sighed, trying to get the words he wanted out. "What about Alya? Should I tell her? Because… she's Alix's friend too, and I feel like she deserves to know."

Marinette blinked several times. Nino preemptively winced as he waited for her response.

"Gee, I… I don't know. That's a lot to take in. I know you're probably not going to tell me, but it's hard when I don't know what that secret is."

"Well… yeah, I mean, I guess, yeah," he nervously chuckled.

Marinette pondered. "Let me ask you a question. If Alya… found out. This 'secret' of Alix's? What would happen? Would it be bad for their friendship if she found out?"

Nino's face became solemn.

"Honestly? That's kind of the issue I'm having. I have no idea how Alya would react. I don't know if she'd be mad that Alix never told her this herself, or… if she'd be mad at me for finding out about it…"

"Nino, does this have something to do with why Alya ran out of the party last night?"

"Huh? Oh, well… no, but- I mean, yes, well… Sort of. But here's what the bit thing is. What I'm afraid of is that she might be even _more_ upset if she didn't catch it from Alix first. Like, I'm worried she'd be totally mad that Alix kept it a secret from her all along and she had to find out from someone else!"

They didn't say anything else for a few moments. Marinette looked down to the ground, taking Nino's words in as he patiently watched and waited.

"Wow, Nino. I get why you were so anxious now. This is pretty big stuff."

"Yeah, and I've been feeling pretty bummed out about it. I mean, I don't want to be a buzzkill to my friends… but I also don't want to betray them by keeping secrets. You get me?"

"Totally. I don't know what I would do if I was in your shoes. I just don't-" She stopped herself as she suddenly thought of something. "Wait a minute."

"Hmm?"

"…Alix's secret. You're not talking about the fact that she put grease on her rollerblades at that skating competition, are you? Because, I hate to burst your bubble…" She grimaced momentarily at the unintentional Bubbler pun. "…but, Alya and I actually knew about that already."

"Huh? Oh, no! It's not that at all, it's something totally different! … Wait, she _seriously_ greased her wheels to win that thing?"

"Ummm… just, pretend you didn't hear that one," Marinette sheepishly responded.

"Okay then. No problemo!" Nino chuckled, giving a thumbs up. His smile faded back into a frown. "Okay. I do have _one_ question that maybe you could answer."

"What's that?"

"Should… I tell _Alix_ that I found out her secret?" he asked.

"Mmmm."

"I mean, it's one thing to not be sure about telling Alya. But, I also feel like I would be betraying Alix by not telling her about it. But then, I'm worried she'll be upset to know I found out about it!"

Marinette bit her lip as she boggled her mind for an answer. As she thought about it however, a smile slowly formed.

"Yeah!" she approved. "That might actually be a _great_ idea! I think you're right, it would probably be worse if you kept this a secret from her _and_ Alya. So yeah, you should definitely tell Alix you found out her secret. Once you do that, maybe then she'll let you know if it's okay to share it with Alya or not!"

"Sweet! Like killing two birds with one stone!" Nino piped, standing up in excitement. His excitement dissipated however, as he slowly realized what this _actually_ entailed.

Marinette just smiled blissfully back at him. "So? Is there… anything else you wanted to talk with me about?"

Silence.

Deliberation.

Pressure building.

Uneasiness.

Then finally, a gulp.

"…No. That's it."

* * *

Adrien was still sitting in the main dining room. Marinette's mother had handed him his cookies long ago, but he still sat there with the bag in his hand.

He perked up when he saw Nino and Marinette coming down the stairs.

"Adrien! Y-you're still here!" Marinette uttered in surprise.

"Well, um, yeah, I had to wait around for my cookie," Adrien explained, holding it up to show her. "Ummm, so what were you guys talking about in there?"

"Oh, nothing. I mean, nothing important! Nino and I were just… talking about something to do with… our friend Alix. It wasn't about you! …I promise!"

Nino watched the whole exchange in intrigue.

" _Funny how Marinette's… being so weird with him right now. But when they're both partnered up, she's smooth as a vinyl record. Hmmph. If she knew he was Chat Noir, would she start acting this way around him when he's in costume too? I think Paris would be doomed…_ "

"Oh. How's Alya doing anyway?" Adrien asked. "I was worried about her after last night."

"Alya? Oh, uh… she's doing great," said Nino. "It just got a little stressful for her last night, but don't worry, bud. I talked to her this morning and she seems to be a whole lot better."

Marinette turned to him, puzzled. "Well, if that's the case, could you ask her why she isn't answering any of my calls?"

"Ummm…"

Just as he tried to think of something, the bell rang a third time.

"Oh, hey guys!" said Alix Kubdel. "My father sent me to pick up the cake he ordered from your parents, Marinette."

"Of course! We have it right here," said Marinette, as she went over to grab it. "That's funny you came by, Nino and I were just talking about you!"

"Hey, Alix," said Adrien.

"Adrien. Nino. So, Marinette says you guys were talking about me…?" Alix asked.

Nino fidgeted. "Oh no, that was nothing! We were just… talking about something else and your name came up. Nothing to do with you at all, actually."

Alix and Adrien both looked at him weirdly. Nino began to sweat.

" _Oh, man… Which secret was I supposed to be nonchalant about, again?_ "

Marinette saw what was unfolding, and leaned over to Alix with a warm smile.

"Don't worry, Alix," she whispered, handing her a cake in a box. "Your secret's safe with us."

Her eye then caught something else, and she walked away. Alix blinked back several times. She then turned to Nino.

"What… just happened?"

"Oh, it's kind of a long story," Nino explained. "Marinette and I were talking about something, and your name happened to come up. But I swear, we didn't talk about something incriminating like… about your wheels or anything!" He winced hard. "Aww, man."

"Umm, okay…?"

"Adrien, back me up here. We wouldn't-" But when he looked Adrien's way, Adrien was suddenly gone from his table, having left his cookies behind. "Huh?" He then looked to his left, and noticed that Marinette had disappeared too.

"Well, that's bizarre. Where did they run off to in such a hurry?" Alix wondered.

Suddenly, they both heard loud noises from the TV. They looked up to see Nadja Chamack giving a live report on the Paris streets.

"This is Reporter Chamack with a breaking news bulletin!" A large, yellow creature could be seen behind her. "For the third time this week, he are experiencing yet another monster attack right here in the heart of the city!"

"Oh. Well, _that_ explains it," said Nino.

* * *

Alya's thumb hovered over the "Call" icon on her phone.

"I just don't know what I'd say to her," she lamented to herself. "Hey, Marinette! Long time, no see. Sorry about the party last night, I'm just having trouble dealing with the fact that I sort of found out our classmate and your long-time crush Adrien is actually a superhero!"

She stared up at the ceiling as if the answer was just suddenly going to be written out for her on the pale white paint. She closed her eyes and thought back to her conversation with Nino.

"Nino was so cool about it, and he's much closer with Adrien than either me or Marinette," she noted. "Maybe if I slowly introduced the notion to her, she'd be able to come around it…"

She sat up, but held her knees together and sighed as she realized something.

"But that still doesn't get around the fact that Adrien might still be more interested in his partner Ladybug than her. I wouldn't want Marinette to suddenly be jealous of Ladybug just because her partner is Adrien! That would be so hard to deal with," she moaned as she gazed at all her collected pictures of Ladybug.

She stood up and took a few photos off of her corkboard. She flipped through them continuously, as she thought about Nino's words. She went back and forth between her pictures of Ladybug and her pictures of Marinette. Time seemed to come to a stand-still as the poor girl rattled her brain, unable to come to a decision.

She closed her eyes, still thinking about Nino…

…

…

"Wait a minute."

Alya flew up straight like a rake. Replaying Nino's words in her word… she had suddenly realized something…

" _Like that nonsense he was tooting last night by saying that Chat's a better partner than Marinette and is always saving her from trouble!_ "

"What did… Nino mean by saying Chat's a better partner than…"

That's when she found herself staring a picture of Ladybug… and for the first time, she began to see.

The same hair. The same eyes. The same _smile_.

"Marinette!?"


	10. Cut to the Cheese-- Err, Chase

Alya didn't know where she was running to. All she knew was that running helped her try to organize her thoughts.

"Chat Noir… Adrien… Ladybug… Marinette… Can't be, can't be!"

As she sprinted down the street, she pulled two photos from her pocket: a rather bad shot of Marinette shielding her face from the flash of Alya's camera, taken shortly after she had designed the banner for Alix and Kim's race, and a candid picture of Ladybug during the Horrificator's attack.

Using a pair of scissors, she cut out the top pieces of both photos, and then held them up to compare. No matter which way Alya tried to look at it… it was the same cute, blue pigtails in both photos.

"Blue hair with pigtails… This can't be real…" She was saying to herself. "I would've known if Ladybug was sitting right next to me in class for a whole year, and slept over at my house…!"

As she tried to examine the photos more closely, a sudden bump caused them to fly right out of her hands.

"Oh my gosh, I am so sorry… Alya!?"

"Marinette?" said Alya, stunned to see her best friend having crashed right into her. "What are _you_ doing here?"

A sudden heavy roar interrupted the pair. They looked up to see a great, yellow monster crouched over a rooftop. The monster was humanoid in form but burly and covered in a strange, yellow slime which left its facial features barely visible. A line of spiked cheese slices ran down its back, and its hands cascaded into stringy cheese fingers.

"An akuma!?" Alya gasped. "Made out of… cheese!?"

The creature extended its long string cheese fingers and grabbed a tree right off the ground, causing nearby civilians to panic and flee.

"We've gotta hide!" Marinette declared. "You go that way, I'll go this way!"

She tried to run off, but was stopped by Alya grabbing her wrist.

"Whoa, girl. Why don't you ever want to hide together during one of these things…? Maybe we'll catch Ladybug in action."

Marinette grunted in frustration. "There's no time, Alya!" she snapped, trying to pull herself away. "That akuma will snatch us up if we take too long trying to find a hiding place we can both fit in! And besides, uh… Adrien's still inside our bakery, so you should go back there and protect him!"

"But why can't you-"

She could barely get another word out before a giant slice of Stinking Bishop came tumbling towards them, forcibly separating them. Her arm freed, Marinette took off for real.

"Sorry, Alya!" she hastily cried out.

Alya picked herself up as she watched her best friend flee.

"Marinette's always running off somewhere when there's an akuma attacking…" Alya came to realize. "Just like Nino said Adrien always does…"

The photo of Ladybug brought back to her mind what happened during the Horrificator incident.

"Adrien left his shoe behind right before Chat Noir appeared… and… Marinette disappeared too! With her phone left behind! They must've used the exact same trick!"

She looked back at the photo of Marinette, and began thinking back to when _that_ photo was taken.

"But then, that still leaves the question of how Ladybug showed up on the roof when Timebreaker attacked and Marinette was still next to me… Maybe I _am_ wrong…" But then her eyes gradually widened. "Unless Max was right when he swore that he saw _two_ Ladybugs that day!"

She made a loud grunt before the beast's roar forced her to shake it off and run down the park. However, she stopped herself…

A moment of deliberation as Alya realized that there was still a seed of doubt in her hunch. One that had to be quenched.

…

She turned heel.

* * *

Meanwhile, Marinette kept running until she finally found a disused alleyway to hide in.

"Time to transform!" She declared. "Tikki, SPOTS ON!"

Tikki appeared and initiated the transformation from insecure schoolgirl Marinette Dupain-Cheng into confident superheroine Ladybug.

Fishing out her trusty yo-yo, Ladybug hoisted herself up into the air and fled off to confront the gargantuan Gorgonzola beast.

…And Alya pressed click on her phone, having been peering into the alley the whole time.

"Welp," was all the stunned girl could say.

* * *

" _I finally have the footage I've been seeking years and years to get. But I'm sure not feeling like a great deductive reporter right now…_ "

"Right behind ya, Ladybug!" she heard a voice say behind her.

She turned away from the alley to see Chat Noir leaping from building to building towards his beauty and her beast.

" _How long has my best friend been keeping this from me?_ "

Her thoughts were interrupted, yet again, by bumping into someone.

"Oww!" she exclaimed. "Watch where you're goin- Oh my goodness! Nino! I'm so sorry!"

"No worries… Totally my fault." Nino straightened up his glasses, and gulped as he faced his girlfriend. "Alya, I… There's, there's something important I need to talk to you about. Can we go somewhere private?"

* * *

The two stood behind a bus stop near the park, as their conversation resumed.

"Okay, here goes…"

Before he could continue however, Alya shushed his lips with her finger.

"Wait, Nino. Before you do, I have something important that I need to get off my chest too. I just found out something huge and I should tell you before anyone else."

"But, Alya, I- Can I please go first?" Nino stammered. "I've been holding this one in for so long and I think I'm about to burst!"

"I'm about to burst too, Nino!" she pleaded. "I just have to get this out there!"

Their faces both winced up in anticipation, until finally…

"MARINETTE IS LADYBUG!" They both shouted. "WAIT, WHAT!? YOU KNEW ALREADY!?"

They immediately covered their mouths and whipped their heads around to see if anybody could hear them. Luckily, they didn't catch anybody's attention with their outburst. They both went "Phew" in relief.

"Okay, now we're finding someplace _really_ private," Alya said sternly.

* * *

Ladybug watched from a rooftop as the cheese monster made its rampage across the streets of Paris. Chat Noir leapt over to her side, spinning his baton.

"Where does Hawkmoth keep finding these guys?" Ladybug asked.

"Got me," Chat responded. "But one thing's for sure, these villains are getting cheesier every day."

Ladybug shot him a look.

"Sorry, I couldn't resist. Bring it on, Gouda-zilla!"

The two leapt off the roof onto the ground to face the beast.

"Agh!"

Chat's landing was not as graceful as Ladybug's however. He clutched his left foot in pain upon landing.

"You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Chat groaned. "I just… got my foot hurt a bit last night. I should be good as long as I walk it off a bit."

"I sure hope so. I don't know what I'd do with a Chat that can't walk on all fours."

Chat smirked back.

* * *

Nino watched the video on Alya's phone as the two sat in the middle of a dinner. Typical Parisian café, there wasn't a noisier place in the world for a private conversation.

The footage finished as Marinette completed her transformation and leapt off.

"…Wow," was all Nino found himself able to say afterwards.

He looked up at Alya for a reaction; she didn't have one. Her face was almost blank, but Nino could tell that she was thinking pretty deeply.

"I can't believe I just… never noticed any of it," she finally said.

"Any of what?"

"Just, the clues. The obvious clues. Like… like, it's what you said! A tiny voice! I always thought I heard one too! So many times, I heard Marinette talking to nobody. And I always thought it was just her being her usual, weird self."

She slammed her fist on the table, making Nino jump.

" _Tikki_! I knew I had heard that name somewhere when Plagg mentioned it. That's gotta be what her Kwami's name is!"

Nino nodded in agreement. But after a moment, he started to giggle to himself.

"I just thought about something," he said.

"What?"

"Well… you'd think sooner or later, we would've picked up on the fact that they're the only two people in our class who have _never_ been akumatized!"

"I- Well, there's… Kim-" Alya's words halted, as she contemplated. A finger went around as she mentally checked off the akumatized classmates in her head. Her eyes widened. "Oh my gosh. You're totally right. We, are officially the biggest idiots."

They both giggled now. Once it had subsided, Alya went back to looking guilty.

"Nino… I'm sorry. We should've been honest with each other from the beginning."

"Yeah. I really wanted to," he solemnly agreed. "I just didn't know, how you… Alya. Would you have been mad, if I was the one who told you?"

Alya seemed uncertain. She reached over to grab her phone and held it in her hands.

"I mean, like… are you mad now?"

"No. I'm not." She sighed with resignation. "I guess… it was _always_ their secret. For whatever reason, they didn't want to tell a soul. … Not even each other, apparently. Everything I ever knew and posted on the Ladyblog has been turned upside down."

"Speaking of the Ladyblog, you weren't gonna…?"

Alya looked at him quizzically. Nino gestured to her phone screen, where the video of Marinette's transformation was still open. Alya gasped, almost looking offended at the mere suggestion.

"Nino! These are our friends we're talking about, of course I'm not gonna upload this for everyone to see!" She sighed again, this time despondently. "Honestly, I was never gonna reveal it anyway, no matter who it was. Especially not after what happened when I became Lady Wifi…"

She looked ashamed now, reminiscing of the grief she had caused Chloé, and later Ladybug.

"Alya…?" Nino uttered, resting his hand on her arm.

"I think… I think I just wanted to know who she was… so I could thank her personally for all that she's done for us. For the city." She chuckled. "Not bad for a girl who never thinks much of herself _outside_ of the mask."

Nino was smiling now. Alya looked up at him.

"What?"

He stifled another chuckle. "No offense, Alya, but… looking at the whole blog thing, I think it makes a lot of sense why Marinette was too scared to tell you."

"No kidding. I was always so nuts about this thing." A sweeping realization washed over her. "I bet poor Marinette has gone this whole time thinking I'm gonna skin her alive."

"What, you mean you're not?"

"Ha-ha!" Alya replied sarcastically. "But you know, the more I think about it, the whole thing _does_ seem kind of weird when you consider that I've basically built a shrine to my best friend without realizing it. Now I feel even worse about the whole Lady Wifi thing…" her voice trailed. "That was my best friend I was trying to expose."

"Hey, don't feel so bad! It's not like I'm not that much better. I'm the one who actually bought a Chat Noir shirt and hung a giant poster of him in my room!" Nino retorted, pointing two thumbs at himself. "My bro Adrien's been covering the wall beside my bed for like, a year! I always went to bed hoping those big cat eyes of his would keep me safe from nightmares. So really, I'm the one who should be feeling totally weird!"

"Oh, man," Alya laughed with a hand over her face. "And _now_ I get why Adrien was so gaga over that shirt the first day you wore it!"

"Oh yeah! I forgot all about that!" Nino chortled. "Man, no wonder I fell in love with you so easily."

"Hmm?"

"Cause you're right. We're both big dummies."

Nino got a playful smack on the shoulder in return.

* * *

"ROOOOOAAAAARRRRR!"

The cheese monster bellowed to the air, before spitting out several projectiles the heroes' way. Chat Noir braced himself, as several pointed spikes of cheese came hurtling towards him.

"Now _that_ 's what I call sharp cheddar."

Frantically, Chat whipped out his baton and spun it around in front of him, shredding the cheese spikes before they had a chance of hitting him.

"A plan would be helpful sometime soon, LB!" he shouted.

"Lucky charm!"

Ladybug threw up her magical yo-yo, and in return received…

"A rope lasso?"

The monster descended over Chat. He leapt out of the way as the beast's mouth closed in on him.

"Looks like you're gonna need to round up this Mozzarella monster, m'lady! Before it makes a snack out of _me_!"

Ladybug looked around. Her lucky vision allowed her to spot a protruding spike on the monster's back: a perfect target.

"Hold him steady, Chat!"

Chat threw his baton down into the monster's jaws, keeping his teeth from chomping down on the slick feline.

"What do you think I've been doing!?"

With a wind-up and a yell, Ladybug tossed the lasso. It landed over its target swiftly, and Ladybug gripped tightly. The monster roared however, and began charging away, dragging Ladybug along with him.

"WHOOAAHHH-OHHHHH!"

Chat leapt behind her.

"I've gotcha, Ladybug!" he yelled.

Chat grabbed onto her feet and tried to pull the monster back. However, just then, his foot gave out… and Chat quickly lost his footing on the ground. Now they were both being launched.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" they screamed as the lasso thrust them forwards.

* * *

The next thing Nino and Alya knew, a large splat shook the whole diner silent.

The entire window lay covered in cheese, dripping downwards. In the middle of it were Ladybug and Chat Noir themselves, their faces pressed against the window and their whole bodies covered in yellow slime.

Alya and Nino stared at them with wide eyes, as did the whole café.

Chat Noir waved meekly at them, before they both slid down and out of sight.

"Should… we tell them we just saw that?" Nino inquired.

"Actually… that brings up a good question," Alya realized. "We should… probably let them know that we found out who they are. Shouldn't we?"

"Yeah, I guess so. If this whole fiasco has proven anything, I definitely can't be trusted with secrets for very long." He took Alya's hands in his. "One question though, babe. How do you want to do it?"

"How do you mean?"

"I mean… are we telling them together, or not? I'm cool with whatever _you_ think is best."

Alya stared back at Nino, and then over to the window as she thought long and hard. Outside, she could barely see through the melting cheese as Ladybug picked a dazed Chat Noir off the ground and carried him away, arm over shoulder. She looked back at the patrons, spotted Alya, and gave an innocent smile her way.

Alya smiled back, chuckling to herself.

"Separately," she decided. "We should definitely do it separately. It'd be one thing for them to find out that we know their secret. But, I don't... think Marinette would be ready to find out that Adrien of all people is her partner. I think Ladybug would be on the next train out of France if I told her _that_."

"Yeah she would!" said Nino.

They both laughed.

Alya took note of the Ladyblog, which was still open on her phone. She seemed to gather an idea from gazing at it. And then within the blog, she saw an article she had posted regarding Chat Noir the other day. And that also got some gears turning in her head.

"You know what?" she said, looking up at Nino. "I think I just figured out the way to do it. For both of us."


	11. With Love

Steam followed a towel-clad Marinette into her room. She unsheathed the towel wrapped around her head and took a great big sigh.

Humming to herself, she got herself dressed and immediately plopped down onto her bed, not having even bothered to tie her hair up yet.

Tikki flew over to her, having patiently waited until Marinette was fully clothed before emerging from her spot.

"Wow, Marinette. That's gotta be your fifth shower today," she noted.

"And I still don't think I got all the cheese out of my hair…" Marinette groaned, running her fingers through her silky, blue hair. "Why did Hawkmoth have to choose something so goopy for an akuma?"

She reached her arm over to pick up her phone from the nightstand, and checked her texts.

"Still nothing back from Alya," Marinette sighed. "I wish I could find out what's up with her. I bumped into her yesterday, and she seemed fine? And then I saw her and Nino at the diner while Chat and I were fighting the akuma, and she looked happy there too. So why is she still not talking to me? I _really_ think I must've said something wrong at the dinner date."

"Maybe it's like your dad said," Tikki tried to assure her. "Maybe you should just… give her some space for a while, and see what happens."

"I guess…" Marinette sat up, huddling her knees together. "I just don't understand what's been going on with my friends lately. Everyone's acting so weird all of a sudden, it almost feels like I'm on another planet."

Tikki smiled sympathetically. Looking around the room for something to cheer her friend up, she noticed something: a push notification on Marinette's computer. She flew over to look at it.

"Hey, Marinette, look at this! Alya posted an update on her blog!"

"So?" she answered despondently.

"Sooooo, it's probably going to be about how you saved everyone from the monster yesterday! Don't you think hearing your best friend talk about how great you are would cheer you up?"

Marinette sighed. "I suppose so. Even though I know she's actually talking about Ladybug, not me."

Begrudgingly, she got up and sat down at her computer. She clicked the notification, which opened up the Ladyblog website, and took her to a video that began playing.

Alya was reporting, microphone in hand, while standing on the street corner where Ladybug and Chat Noir had had their cheesy confrontation.

"Ladybug and Chat Noir stopped another akuma yesterday, this time in the form of a… giant… cheese monster!" Alya proclaimed.

"I was there, and I still find that hard to believe," Marinette chuckled.

"We owe so much to these great heroes," Ala continued, smiling softly. "Ladybug and Chat Noir are always there to save us from evil. Think of how many lives every day are saved thanks to their noble efforts."

"She's being very sweet today," Tikki noticed.

"She looks a lot happier," Marinette agreed. "I wonder if she's gotten over whatever it was that was bugging her." She looked down at her phone once again, still worried over the lack of response.

"Especially Ladybug."

Marinette looked back up at the screen.

"I don't know what I'd do knowing she wasn't always there. Always right behind you, ready to help. She's always right under our noses," said Alya, looking down to the ground with a smile.

"More than you would think," Marinette remarked.

"But how much under our noses?" Alya now adopted a quizzical look. "Any one of us could know the real Ladybug and not even know it, right? I've tried for so long to discover who that amazing girl really is under the mask…"

Marinette's eyes gradually widened as she sat up straight, not sure what was about to come next.

"Well you know what I think? I think that Ladybug's real identity…"

Marinette gulped.

"…is and should always be a mystery."

Marinette let herself fall back, a huge wave of relief sweeping over her.

"It doesn't matter who's under that mask. Ladybug will always be my hero, _and_ best friend... to the whole city!"

And then, Alya made a familiar gesture. She closed one eye, winking at the camera… and then blew a kiss between her fingers. Marinette paused the video.

"Wow. Did you see that little kiss she did at the end there?" Tikki noted. "That looks just like that secret friendship sign you two hav-"

She turned around, only to see Marinette's empty chair spinning in place. A small gust trailed in the doorway, the bedroom door having been swung open.

"…Marinette?"

* * *

"Especially Ladybug. I don't know what I'd do knowing she wasn't always there. Always right behind you, ready to help. She's always right under our noses."

Adrien scoffed. He was watching the same video on his triple-screen monitor from the comfort of his large and expansive bedroom.

"Well, okay. Sure. I mean, Ladybug is very amazing, she's not wrong about that…"

"Heh, the mind of an aloof teenager," Plagg mused, eating cheese on the desk next to him. "Doesn't know whether to be in love with her or jealous of all the glory she gets…"

"Hey, I'm just saying, she _could_ have spent a little bit longer talking about how awesome Chat Noir is, too."

"Clearly, you're so awesome that it doesn't even need to be said."

"Wow. A compliment. That's rare coming from you," Adrien mused.

Alya's video had kept on going underneath their conversation.

"It doesn't matter who's under that mask. Ladybug will always be my hero, _and_ best friend... to the whole city!"

Adrien watched, and then raised his eyebrows, as he saw Alya make a strange yet vaguely familiar gesture on-camera.

"Huh? What was that kiss thing she did at the end?" he wondered, gazing more closely. "And… where have I seen that before? That almost looked like-"

Alya cleared her throat. "Anyway, now that _that's_ out of the way, I'd like to get to mentioning the other brains of the bunch, the fearsome Chat Noir!"

"That's more like it," Adrien said coyly.

"Speaking of Chat Noir, don't forget! He's got a meet-and-greet scheduled in the park today. Fans can come to meet Chat Noir in person and have their Chat Noir posters and merchandise signed…"

"Wait… The signing?" Then he gasped. A flash of eyes went over to his wall calendar to reveal… yup. Today's date was _circled_. "Oh, no! I completely forgot about that!"

Adrien stood up with a jolt, trying not to panic.

"I can't believe I almost let my adoring public down! Ahhh, I'm so stupid! Plagg, claws- OWW!"

He lifted his arm up, to see Plagg's teeth clamped down on his forearm.

"Sorry" uttered Plagg's muffled voice. "You really should've showered better. That cheesy smell is really confusing."

"I'll deal with that later, Plagg," said Adrien, pulling him off. "Come on, let's go meet our fans before they start a riot."

* * *

Tikki flew all over Paris, doing her best to make sure she wasn't seen as she scoped out the city to find Marinette. As she flew closer to the park, she heard a familiar sound of nervous breathing.

She looked over to a tree by the fountain, and saw her friend huddling up under it, breathing a thousand breaths a minute.

"Oh. There you are, Marinette. I've been looking all over for-"

But before she could finish, Marinette clutched her with both hands and started shaking her.

"She knows, Tikki!" she burst out. "Alya knows! She somehow found out I'm Ladybug!"

"Calm down, Marinette!" Tikki shouted.

But the poor girl wouldn't stop hyperventilating. Tikki looked at her with concern, and took a sigh of remorse.

"I knew this would probably happen sooner or later," she stated.

"What do you mean!?"

"I've worked with lots of girls who donned the mask of Ladybug over the years, Marinette. And usually, whenever someone did find out, it was almost always either their best friend or a close family member. And, well… Alya _does_ has a whole blog about you. In some ways, it was only a matter of time."

"I must've slipped up or… something," Marinette fretted, knuckles between her teeth as her eyes darted around. "She probably saw me transform, or finally did the math and realized we both have blue hair. No wonder she's avoided me so much lately! I don't know how I stayed safe from her prying eyes for so long."

Tikki blinked at her a few times.

"You know Alya wouldn't just skin you alive if she knew you were Ladybug, right?"

"Right… I know."

"Marinette, I think this is a blessing in disguise. I've seen how much it hurts for you to keep this a secret from the people you love."

Marinette thought about this, but still began to look guilty.

"It's my responsibility to keep my identity hidden, isn't it? I wasn't supposed to let anybody find out."

"It is," Tikki nodded. " _Unless_ it falls completely out of your hands, of course. Which… like I said, it does sometimes," she said matter-of-factly. "Then we have no choice but to confront the matter."

Tears were beginning to fall down Marinette's face. Tikki wiped them away.

"Just trust me, Marinette. Y'know, oftentimes, when those other Ladybugs' friends found out, they became commendable allies. Can I let you in on a secret?"

Marinette nodded softly.

"One time, one of the previous Ladybugs had a friend whose trust and loyalty proved to be so strong, my master actually chose them to become a Miraculous holder themselves!" she whispered.

Marinette let out a heavy gasp, and her brain began to rattle.

"Are you saying Alya might one day beco-"

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves, Marinette. It _was_ just a one-time thing."

"Right, right, of course." Feeling surer of her feelings, Marinette stood up. "But you're right, Tikki. If Alya really has figured me out, I should probably go find her and come clean."

"That's my girl!" Tikki cheered.

Together, they began to march out of the park, determined yet uncertain. As Marinette thought about something else however, she stopped in her tracks and turned to Tikki with an accusing look.

"Wait a minute… you didn't let her catch you, did you?"

Tikki shook her head. "Of course not, Marinette. Us Kwamis are masters of stealth. I'd never be dumb enough to let Alya catch me sleeping in your locker or something."

* * *

Somewhere else in the park, unbeknownst to Marinette and Tikki, a vendor stand was set up near the carousel. Many young people were gathered around to meet their black-masked hero, who was in the midst of handing out signatures.

"To Chloé Bourgeois, many happy returns… Chat Noir."

Chat Noir handed the autographed leaflet over to Chloé Bourgeois, who stood at the front of the line enthusiastically.

"Oh. My gosh. Thank you so much. I mean, not that it matters as much coming from Ladybug's sidekick. But hey, whatever works," she laughed.

Chat gave a polite smile in return. As Adrien Agreste, he'd had many years of practice taking his childhood friend's back-handed compliments in stride.

"By the way…" Chloé said, leaning in close. "You didn't happen to know if Ladybug got that letter I sent to her last month, do you kitty-cat?" she asked alluringly.

"Huh? Oh yeah, uhh… She did," he recalled. "And, she… appreciated it. But unfortunately, we just don't have any openings to join our superhero team right now."

"Awww, poo!" she grunted. She slipped a note out of her jacket, and grabbed Chat's pen to write something on it. "Well okay, I'll tell you what? Here's my phone number if you ever change your mind and decide to add someone valuable to your roster!"

"Oh, I don't need that, I already ha- errr, I mean… Yeah! I'd appreciate having your number."

She handed the slip to him, and then flocked away, squealing to herself. Chat let his smile slip as he watched her leave.

"Glad I didn't tell her just how _colorful_ Ladybug's response was…" he muttered, almost chuckling to himself in reminisce.

Nino whistled casually, only a couple of spots away from meeting who he now knew to be his best friend that he saw every day. But with a professional headshot of Chat Noir in his hand, he smiled deviously to himself. On top of that, he happened to be wearing the exact Chat Noir shirt that had made Adrien just as excited before.

Eventually, he found himself at the front, where Chat greeted him in excitement.

"Well, hello there, loyal fan!" he buttered up. "Might I say, that's an awesome shirt you've got there!"

"Heh, thanks!" Nino giggled. He handed the photo over to Chat.

"And _who_ will I be making this bad boy out to, hmm?" Chat asked, flittering his eyebrows.

"Well, as a matter of fact, I'd like you to make this one out to my super pal, Adrien!"

"Yes, sir! To Ni- Ahh-!" He had already begun writing an N, which he had to halt and then scribble out. "I'm sorry, did you say Adrien? As in… Adrien Agreste?"

"Mm-hm. Yeah. I know it don't look it, but he and I are actually really tight, and I just know he'd love to have a poster signed out to his hero!"

Chat Noir stared at him incredulously, but nonetheless smiled politely.

"Uhh yeah, okay. That makes sense, I guess."

" _Except if I ever wanted my own autograph, I could get it pretty easily…_ " he thought to himself.

"To… Adrien! You're the cat's meow. Your pal, Chat Noir!" he signed off, trying as best he could to disguise how weird he felt. He finished it off with a drawing of a pawprint.

"Wow, totally awesome!" Nino expressed, seemingly slack-jawed. "Thank you so much, Chat Noir! Oh man, I'd love to show this to Adrien right away! I wonder where I could find him…"

He pulled out his phone, apparently ready to try dialing his friend. Chat went wide-eyed, and waved his hand to get Nino's attention away from calling him.

"Hey, uh… you know what? I, umm, I remember reading somewhere that… Adrien Agreste loves to hang out by the boat docks! Maybe that's where you'll find him."

"Really?" Nino replied. "Huh. I've never heard him say anything about liking boats."

"Well… sometimes, you just never know!" Chat coaxed, laughing nervously. "Why don't you, uhh- try heading there to look for him? And uhhh, if you don't see him right away, maybe just wait an hour or two?"

"Ummm, well okay. I guess it's worth a shot. Thanks, Cat Bro!" Nino yelled, running off.

" _Now I just gotta deal with this crowd as quick as I can…"_

"Hey, all you cool cats! Uhh…" Thinking fast, he pretended to look over at his Miraculous. " _Beep beep beep!_ Uh-oh, you hear that? My power's about to run out soon, so I'm gonna have to wrap this signing up! Why don't you all remain in a single file line and I'll try to breeze through-"

Before he could speak any further, all the fans that were still in line immediately huddled up to the front, all waving their photos and trinkets in Chat's face, begging for a signing.

"Ohhh, me and my fat mouth…" he groaned to himself.

With superhero speed, he managed to imprint himself on all the merch that was surrounding him, and then hopped away from the stand.

"Alright, sorry to leave you guys and gals pawing for more, but… gotta bounce!"

Chat sped away from the scene as his fans yelped and pined after him.

Nino meanwhile, had been hiding behind a bush the whole time.

"Hook, line, and sinker," he said, smirking to himself. He reached into the bush and dug out a Turbo Scooter he'd kept stashed within.

"I just hope this thing will be able to get me there so I can beat him to the pier…"

As he walked the scooter to the sidewalk, he was surprised to see Chat leap above him and jump across rooftops towards the harbor.

"Aw man, he's so fast!" Nino bemoaned. "I didn't know he would say to meet at the harbor of all places. Now, I'm never gonna catch him…"

As he got on the scooter and fastened on his helmet, Nino gripped hard and took position for a speedy ride through the town… until a limousine suddenly pulled up next to him. Adrien's limo.

The tinted window rolled down to reveal Adrien's bodyguard and chauffeur, who didn't seem to have a name but whom Nino sometimes liked to call "the Gorilla" because of his unique hairstyle. He eyed Nino, stone-faced as he always was.

"Hey, kid," he said gruffly. "Heard you need to meet Adrien by the docks. Need a ride?"

Nino stared back at him, feeling very confused.

"Suuure…?"

"Hop in."

Nino got into the car and sat in silence, deciding not to ask any questions.

* * *

The bell rang as the door to the Dupain-Chengs' bakery opened up. Tom Dupain, well in the middle of preparing a big order, looked up to see who it was.

"Hey, Mr. Dupain. Ummm, is Marinette around?" asked Alya.

"Oh hi, Alya!" he said, waving. "Sorry to say, you just missed her. She left about an hour ago. Seemed to be in an awful hurry about something."

"Oh, okay. Thanks."

Alya looked around the bakery, eyed her best friend's father… and then began to stare down at the floor.

"…Something wrong?" Tom asked.

"Oh, I'm just… thinking." She closed her eyes for a moment, and then looked back up at Mr. Dupain. "I kind of just did something that might make Marinette upset. And I kind of did it without asking her or giving her a heads-up about it…" She started to look remorseful. "I'm starting to worry that she might get really mad or afraid, and not want to talk to me anymore over it…"

Tom Dupain took in what she said, and smiled back at her.

"I shouldn't think so. I've known Marinette her whole life," he chuckled. "She doesn't stay mad at anyone for very long, not even that girl Chloé she's always fretting about."

Alya laughed.

"You know, she always speaks the whole world of you, Alya. You really make her day sometimes. You're her best friend. And like you said in your podcast thing-y, she's a friend and a loyal hero to everyone. So, don't worry. I think you two are still gonna be fine friends."

Alya smiled. "Thank you, sir."

Alya turned to leave, but then a sudden realization made her halt.

"Wait a minute." Alya went wide-eyed. "Did Marinette's father just say…?"

She turned back around, but Mr. Dupain had gone back into the kitchen. Alya put a hand to her forehead.

"Alright. One revelation at a time, Alya..."


	12. No More Secrets

Chat Noir swooped into the empty alleyway overlooking the harbor. After a swift look to make sure no one else was around, he removed the Miraculous ring from his finger. With a flash of green, he transformed back to Adrien Agreste.

"Alright. Now to just chill here while I wait for Nin-"

"Gotcha."

Adrien yelped with a jump, as Nino suddenly appeared from behind a pallet of shipping containers.

"Nino!? But, how- You were just- Why…?"

"What's the matter, bro? Cat got your tongue?"

But ultimately, all Adrien could do was huff grumpily.

"How long have you known?"

"Ehhh… only for a day or so," Nino fibbed, emerging from his hiding spot. "I, uh… mmm. You know what it was, actually? I saw your 'kwami' thing at that dinner party the other day."

"Plagg!" Adrien shouted.

Plagg flew out in a panic.

"Ahh! I didn't do anything, I swear! She's lying! You can't prove I sold my soul out to Aly-" Then he caught sight of Nino. "Oh. Ummm… I am a harmless toy?" he sheepishly stated, trying once more to imitate a robotic toy.

Adrien gave him a light smack.

"I take it _he's_ the one who constantly on my crackers and cheese when I'm not looking," said Nino, pointing a finger at Plagg.

Plagg flew in front of his face. "Hey, if you wanted them so badly, you shouldn't have put cheese on them."

"Because of you, I kept thinking my boy Adrien was a hoarder!" Nino spat back. "In that regard, I'm totally fine with you being a superhero instead of someone with a serious case of the munchies!"

The two laughed.

"Hey, Nino. I'm sorry I-"

Nino hushed him. "I don't want to hear it."

Adrien tried to speak again, but Nino just kept shushing him.

"Hey, don't sweat it, man. I know you had your reasons for not telling me…"

"Yeah, I-"

Nino put his arm over Adrien's shoulder. "…because you knew that I would want to brag to everyone that my best friend is the cool cat superhero that saves Paris!"

"Uh-uh. Yeah. Totally," Adrien jokingly agreed. "Umm, but you aren't… seriously going to tell anyone I'm Chat Noir, are you?"

"Course not, you're my friend. I would never actually plank you over like that. Nobody else knows about this, right? Not even your dad?"

Adrien tensed up. "Dude, _no_ way. If my dad knew that I was moonlighting as a superhero, he'd probably imprison me at home for the rest of my days," he said resignedly.

"Then relax, dude. Nino's got your back." He patted Adrien on the back.

"Thanks, Nino."

The embrace was broken by Plagg however, who flew up to their faces.

"Finally, now we have someone else who can supply me with camembert!"

"Yeah, in your dreams, Plagg," Adrien retorted.

"What kind of name is Plagg?" asked Nino, raising an eyebrow.

"Got me," Adrien shrugged. "He came with it, along with the attitude."

The two of them shared a big laugh, and for the next several minutes, they talked as friends. They talked about all the times Nino had met Chat previously, all the weird times Adrien had to keep his double-life a secret, and the insane measures he often took to keep it that way.

"So you seriously just left your shoe behind on purpose, so we would all think you were kidnapped by Mylene?"

"Hey, it was a clever plan!" Adrien proclaimed in defense. "Certainly made for some great footage, you can't complain about that."

Nino laughed in response. Adrien's smile fell a bit, though. Something else came to his mind.

"Ummm… one more thing," Adrien squeaked. "So… you remember several months ago when I told you I had a crush on Ladybug, right?"

Nino's eyes widened. "Ummm-"

"Well, here's the thing. Just between you and me, because now that you know I'm Chat Noir, you're… probably assuming Ladybug and I are really tight and everything. I know Alya definitely thinks we are when she writes that Ladyblog."

"Umm, actually, I-"

"I mean, in a way, we are. But can I admit something to you? And probably just you, like, don't even tell Alya about this?"

Nino couldn't really muster up any way to respond.

"The truth is… I have no idea who she is, who that wonderful lady is outside of that costume. And she doesn't know the real me, either. I wasn't kidding when I said she never recognized me. I wonder how disappointed she'd be if she ever found out the handsome, cool Chat Noir is just… Adrien."

Nino held back a smile for a second, before noticing his friend's despondent look.

"Are… you okay?"

"Yeah, I am. I guess I just, need some time alone for a while," Adrien replied. "Spending the whole day as Chat Noir greeting fans like that kinda took a lot out of me."

"Yeah, I can see how it would. Of course, I'd feel that way too having to be nice to Chloé and pretend to not know who she is for that long."

Adrien let out a hearty laugh in return. Once it had subsided, he turned to leave.

"Alright, I'll… see you later."

"Yup. Take care bro!" Nino shouted back. "Friends to the end!"

He got ready to take off himself, but then he stopped as he realized something.

" _Right. The… the crush on Ladybug,_ " Nino thought to himself. " _That's something I never told Alya about…_ "

* * *

Meanwhile, on a street corner across town, Marinette had completely run out of breath. She had spent the past hour looking high and low for her best friend, but turned up nothing.

"She's not at her mom's… She's not in the library… This is typical Alya," she said between breaths to Tikki. "Drop a huge bomb on your head and then just disappear so you can't get mad at her over it."

Just then, a sound came from her pocket. Marinette pulled out her phone… to see a surprising notification.

"A text from Alya!" Tikki chirped.

"About time."

She opened the text message. It was short and to the point.

 _HOLLMAN'S CAFÉ. JUST U AND ME._

❤ _Alya_

…

Marinette sharply looked up. As it so happened, Marinette was across the street from that exact café. It was right there in the distance. Marinette walked up to it and looked closely through the window.

There she was. She was looking down at her phone at first, of course having just sent the text. Then she looked up and saw Marinette, and gave a friendly wave.

Marinette gulped.

Alya's eyes followed Marinette as she wandered inside and nervously made her way to Alya's table.

"Hey there, Marinette," she said rather slyly. She motioned to a cup of coffee laid on a plate on the other side of the table. "Fresh cup of mocha, same as you always like… _Ladybug_?"

Marinette jumped out of the seat she was just settling into.

"Sssshh, ssshh!" she shushed, looking to see if anyone else heard.

Alya just kept on smiling. It was a smile Marinette knew all too well. That sly, confident "I got you" famous smile of hers.

"How- how did you find out?" Marinette croaked.

"I have my ways," Alya replied. "I'm a master of deduction, Marinette. You hid yourself from me very well for a while there, and for that, I'll admit I'm impressed. But sooner or later, you were gonna crack, Bug."

"Alya…" Marinette let herself rest into the seat. "I'm so sorry I never told you. I really wanted to, the whole time. Honesty. But I couldn't-"

Alya put her hand up, and Marinette stopped.

"Hey, don't sweat it, girl!" Alya said more sincerely. "I totally get where you're coming from, believe me. If _my_ best friend had a whole website with pictures and videos of me plastered all over it, I wouldn't want to tell her either. Lest I think she was _crazy_!"

Her nervous bubble cracked, and Marinette finally began to smile and chuckle.

"I just didn't-" she giggled out, but Alya interrupted again.

"No, seriously, though! The only girl I know in _all_ of Paris with blue hair and pigtails like that, and all it took was a mask to fool me!? Girl, I knew you were clever, but I had no idea you were a full-on Solid Snake!"

Marinette laughed even more heartily. Alya chuckled back, glad to see her friend loose and smiling again. As the afternoon wore on, they began to chat as friends. Marinette talked more loosely about her double-life as Ladybug, and embarrassed Alya with the many incidents that she came _super_ close to discovering the truth.

"Yeah, so forget what I said about being the world's greatest detective," said Alya, rolling her eyes at herself. "Yo Alya, who could this textbook really belong to? Gee, how about the girl that's trying harder than day to convince you that Ladybug doesn't even go to our school?"

The two of them shared a big laugh, finding comfort in the fact that no one else could hear them in the busy café.

"So… what happens now?" Marinette asked.

"I don't know. You tell me. What shoul-"

But Alya got distracted when she noticed Marinette's snapbag begin to shake.

"Oh yeah, that's right. So what _is_ your little guy's name? …Or girl?"

"Oh! I should… probably introduce you at this point-"

Before she could finish, Tikki flew out on cue in front of Alya, like she'd been waiting for this moment.

"Hi! I'm Tikki!" she greeted.

"Hello, Tikki," Alya giggled.

"Marinette's told me so much about you!"

"Tikki-"

"Oh, really?" Alya responded. "Just what _kind_ of things does she say about me?"

"Good things! Good things, I swear!" Marinette piped.

"Well, now we have all the time in the world to get to know each other," said Alya. "And you can stop looking like you're talking to nobody like a crazy person."

"Heh-heh."

Just then, an alert sounded from Alya's phone. Alya looked over to it… and grimaced. Marinette tried to lean in inquisitively. Alya sighed deeply, and after some hesitation, slid the phone over to her friend.

"It's an alert for… the Ladyblog?" Marinette remarked, not sure what to take from it.

Alya shot her a look.

"Oh… Right. The Ladyblog."

"It's your call, girl."

"Hmm?"

"I don't have to keep doing the Ladyblog if you don't want me to."

"Oh, but Alya… The Ladyblog is your hobby, your passion. It's been your life's work for like, the past year."

Alya shook her head. "Yeah, but you're my best friend, Marinette. You're way more important to me than some silly website. If it makes you uncomfortable, then there's simply no fun in doing it."

"Hmmm…" Marinette looked at the screen as she pondered.

"However, if you ever need a constant reminder of just how awesome and heroic Paris's favorite superhero is…"

Marinette giggled. "Can't argue with that logic."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I've dealt with it for the past year. What's the worst that could happen now that you know it's all about yourself?" She slid the phone back over to Alya, who grabbed it with enthusiasm.

"Oh, just watch me, girl. I'll embarrass you to kingdom come with my next blog post!"

"Great," Marinette giggled.

"On one condition. You, Marinette, now have to tell me who Chat Noir is."

Marinette's eyes shot up wide and she flew back in her chair.

"Huh!? But, but I-I really don't-"

"Relaaaax girl, I'm kidding!" said Alya, thrusting her hands at Mari. "I know you totally don't know who he is."

"Oh," Marinette said, easing back into being relaxed.

"Because if you did, then I would've walked into you guys making out in your room or something by now."

"A-ALYA!" Marinette squeaked.

Alya giggled coyly.

"Ugh," Marinette humphed. "Now that I'm being honest with you, you should know upfront that that Chat Noir is a pain in my side more often than not. He's a great partner and a cool guy, but he annoys me a lot."

"Soooo, you two aren't-?"

"No way, are you kidding? I can barely stand his antics just when we're saving the day!" Her frustrated scowl slowly melted into a smile. "Besides, you know who my heart is really set on…" She sighed dreamily. " _Adrien_!"

"Speaking of which…" said Alya, pointing behind Marinette.

"Huh!?"

Marinette whipped around, to see that Nino and Adrien happened to be walking by the café. Adrien glanced at them through the window and gave a friendly wave. Marinette panicked for a split second, and then frantically waved back… with both arms.

Alya rolled her eyes at her friend. She then looked Nino's way and winked at him. Nino winked back, smiling warmly back at her as they continued.

"Ohhhh, isn't he so dreamy?"

Alya stifled a laugh as best she could.

" _Yeah, she ain't ready to find out who that 'pain in her side' really is yet…_ "


	13. Epilogue

The school bell rang as everyone began walking into school to start another day. The sun had not quite risen fully yet, and so there was a warm orange glow cast over the schoolyard.

Marinette and Alya were walking to school, laughing and joking together as they always had. Their friendship was stronger than it had ever been, especially now that Marinette could more openly talk about her _entire_ day with Alya.

"-and I could still taste those eggs in my mouth the whole rest of the day. And that's why I'm probably not ever going to let any male fans kiss me on the lips again."

"Guess I should cancel that charity reward I promised on the Ladyblog then," Alya chuckled.

"Ha-ha." "Unless… Wait, Adrien's rich, isn't he? Do you think if you set one of those up, he would want to donate enough money to win!?"

"Marinette, I was joking."

Behind them, a limousine pulled up to the front of the school.

"Oh, look! There he is!" Marinette called. "Do you think it'd be ok to let him see me? I don't know if I did my hair right today."

Alya smirked at her friend, shaking her head from behind Mari's back.

Adrien opened the door as he and Nino began to climb out of their seats.

"Thanks for the ride, sir!" Adrien called out to his bodyguard. The "Gorilla" grunted in response.

Nino got out too, but stayed behind to talk to the silent man.

"So, let me get this straight… you knew that Adrien was Chat Noir the whole time?" Nino asked him.

The bodyguard shifted his cold gaze over to Nino.

"Of course," he responded, in his usual gruff, monotone voice. "He and Chat Noir look exactly alike. And every time one of those monsters starts attacking, he always makes me pull over and then runs off and remains gone for a long time. Then Ladybug and Chat Noir save the day and he suddenly comes back. I ain't stupid. … See you around, kid."

With that, he drove off. Nino scratched his head, but shrugged and decided to continue walking.

* * *

" _ **CONFIRM**_ _: Do you really want to delete these 2 videos?_ " a message on Alya's phone read. Alya bit her lip, contemplating. But ultimately, she hit "Yes" and the phone beeped in confirmation.

As she sighed in satisfaction, Nino walked up to her.

He looked over at Marinette, who had begun "discreetly" trailing Adrien as he walked to the door. Adrien eventually noticed her and greeted her with his usual enthusiasm. Marinette stood straight and stammered out a response that neither of them could hear. Alya giggled at the sight.

"Soooo, when are we having that _other_ conversation?" Nino asked her.

"Ehhh, honestly probably never," Alya remarked. "At this rate, I think if they're going to find out who the other is, they should figure that out by themselves."

Nino scoffed. "Good luck with that. Those two are probably in the biggest entangled web of crushes and relationships and they don't even know it. Marinette loves Adrien? Adrien loves Ladybug? Ladybug can't stand Chat? It's the most confusing love triangle since Twilight."

Alya's eyes widened. "Wait a minute… Adrien is in love with Ladybug?"

Nino tensed up as he realized his mistake.

"Oh, dang it."

"Oh, this just got so much juicier!" she declared with an evil smile, as she began to follow Marinette and Adrien with a devious look on her face.

"Alya, _wait_!" Nino called out to her. "Oh, Adrien's totally gonna scratch me up…"

* * *

 _And so, we kept our promise. No more secrets. The cat was completely out of the bag._

… _Well, sort of._

 _Marinette still doesn't know that Nino was the one who found her out. And I'm preeeetty sure Nino hasn't told Adrien that I know his secret identity either. And of course… neither of them knows just how close their bond really is with each other._

 _Man, it's going to be so hilarious and sweet to see unfold, when that time finally comes._

 _But until then... their friends will always have their back. They say you're supposed to keep your friends close to you at all times. But me and Mari, and Adrien and Nino? And me and Nino too?_

 _We're all so much closer than that._

* * *

Aaaaaaand that's the end!

Thank you for all reading, and for the lovely comments. This is the first fanfic I've written (in anything) in over three years, following a long period of writer's block mixed with busy life. But you guys reminded me what I used to love about doing this, so I'm very grateful. :)

There's tons of reveal fics of course, but I always thought the idea of Alya finding out Adrien was Chat Noir and vice versa with Nino would be a cool idea. Sorry I never got to the BIG reveal here. I was planning to leave some room for a potential sequel. I don't know if I'll ever get to that though, especially now that we know some of the huge changes Season 2 is going to bring to the table regarding some of these characters (I was actually in a rush to get this out while it could still be considered "canon compliant" :P).

I dunno, we'll see how I feel about it down the line. I am a bit interested in doing something about how Marinette's father found out her secret, though. So that could be a thing. In any case, I'm glad I put this out and I'm glad you all liked it.


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